Writing
应该 (yīnggāi) — how to say "should" in Chinese
应该
Should
modal verb
How to use it
Goes before another verb.
你应该休息。
nǐ yīng gāi xiū xi
You should rest.
Character composition
应
should
该
should
Radicals / Keys
广
Dotted cliff
#53 · yǎn · 3 strokes
言
Speech
#149 · yán · 7 strokes
Synonyms
Collocations
应该休息
yīnggāi xiūxi
should rest
应该知道
yīnggāi zhīdào
should know
应该去
yīnggāi qù
should go
Examples
作为学生，应该把学习放在第一位。
As a student, you should put studying first.
你应该早点睡觉。
You should go to sleep earlier.
Mnemonic
[yīnggāi-] Yinka the Yeti 🐾 is in the middle of a snowy forest, holding a massive book titled 应该 "SHOULD". Whenever someone asks a question, Yinka flips through the book to find what they 应该 should do next. The forest animals giggle as they peek over, wondering if Yinka 应该 also take his own advice!
Frequently asked questions
How do you say "should" in Chinese?
"should" in Chinese is 应该 (yīnggāi).
What does 应该 mean in English?
应该 (yīnggāi) means "Should".
How is 应该 pronounced?
It is pronounced yīnggāi (written as yinggai). You can listen to the pronunciation on this page.
How do you write "should" in Chinese characters?
It is written 应该: 应 has 7 strokes, 该 has 8 strokes. The Writing section above animates the stroke order of each character and lets you trace it.
What HSK level is 应该?
应该 belongs to the HSK 3 vocabulary list.
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