bi quan

Level ≈B2 (approx.) adjective Sino-Vietnamese Top 5,000 most common

Hanoi [ʔɓi˧˧ kwaːn˧˧]Huế [ʔɓɪj˧˧ kwaːŋ˧˧]Saigon [ʔɓɪj˧˧ waːŋ˧˧] browser voice

Syllables · tones

bilevelngang quanlevelngang

Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →

bi quan means pessimistic.

Chinese characters: 悲觀 (悲 “sad; compassionate” + 觀 “outlook”)

Meanings of bi quan in English

Adjective

pessimistic

Synonyms and antonyms of bi quan

Antonyms

lạc quan

Example sentences with bi quan

Tom đã nói rằng anh ấy từng bi quan. Tom said that he was pessimistic.

Bilingual example sentences from Tatoeba (tatoeba.org, CC BY 2.0 FR).

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 悲觀, composed of 悲 (“sad; compassionate”) and 觀 (“outlook”), from Japanese 悲観 (hikan, literally “sad outlook”), reinterpreted from Buddhist Literary Chinese 悲觀 (bēiguān, literally “compassionate outlook”), mentioned in the Chinese version of the Lotus Sutra together with 慈觀 /慈观 (từ quan, literally “benevolent outlook”). See also từ bi and Quan Thế Âm.

Frequently asked questions

What does bi quan mean in English?

bi quan (adjective) means "pessimistic".

How do you pronounce bi quan?

IPA: Hanoi [ʔɓi˧˧ kwaːn˧˧]; Saigon [ʔɓɪj˧˧ waːŋ˧˧]. Tones: bi — level tone (ngang), quan — level tone (ngang).

Is bi quan a Sino-Vietnamese word?

Yes. bi quan is a Sino-Vietnamese word from the Chinese characters 悲觀.

Meanings, pronunciation and etymology from English Wiktionary (wiktionary.org, via kaikki.org; CC BY-SA 4.0), reviewed and edited; example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). IPA shown for three accents: Hanoi (Northern), Huế (Central) and Saigon (Southern). The Listen button uses your browser's Vietnamese voice, for reference only. Levels are approximate, estimated from word frequency. Spotted a mistake? Let NgonNgu know.