最初

最初 zuìchū

First (primary - initial)

最初 in a sentence HSK 5 zuichu

What 最初 means

  1. First (primary - initial)

These meanings come from the same dictionary that powers the Chinese to Pinyin translator and the Chinese to English translator, so a whole sentence containing 最初 will read it the same way this page does.

Recognise a piece of 最初 but not the character it belongs to? Pick the parts in the component character finder and it will name the character for you — free for every character, with nothing to sign in to.

Character by character

最初 is written with 2 characters. Chinese words are usually easier to remember once you can see what each part contributes.

最
zuì
Most (~est)
初
chū
Initially (first - primary)

How to write 最初

Stroke order is not decoration — it is what makes handwriting legible and what dictionary lookup by stroke count depends on.

Practise 最初 on printable 田字格 sheets, trace it in the writing practice tool, or watch any other character in the Stroke Order Animator.

最初 in a sentence

最初我并不同意。
Zuìchū wǒ bìng bù tóngyì.
At first I did not agree at all.
这是他最初的想法。
Zhè shì tā zuìchū de xiǎngfǎ.
This was his original idea.

Every sentence on this site that uses 最初 is collected on the 最初 sentence page. Want pinyin above a sentence of your own? Paste it into the Pinyin Annotator.

Questions about 最初

What does 最初 mean in English?

最初 is pronounced zuìchū and means First (primary - initial).

How do you pronounce 最初?

最初 is zuìchū in pinyin — written zuichu without tone marks. Press the audio button on this page to hear it spoken by a native voice.

What are the characters in 最初?

最初 is written with 2 characters: 最 (zuì) Most (~est), 初 (chū) Initially (first - primary). Knowing the parts is usually how the whole word becomes memorable.

Is 最初 an HSK word?

Yes — 最初 is on the official HSK 5 vocabulary list. You can study it with the rest of that list on the HSK 5 page.

Studied around the same time

Keep going

Translate a whole sentence containing 最初 with the Chinese to Pinyin translator, study it alongside the rest of HSK 5, drill it with HSK flashcards, or save it above and review it on your review deck.

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