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This vocabulary covers feelings, attitudes, personal qualities and physical states. The positive/negative groups are learning aids: curiosity, surprise, shyness and desire are not inherently good or bad in every situation.
If you’re looking for words that describe emotions in Chinese so you can learn words and phrases to express your emotions, then you are in the right article! In this article you will learn 30 positive and 30 negative words that describe emotions in Chinese as well as phrases as examples when using these words.
Vocabulary
Here are a few positive and negative words that describe emotions in Chinese with its corresponding pinyin and translation.
Positive Emotions
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 崇拜 | chóngbài | adoration |
| 放心 | fàng xīn | relieved/reassured |
| 高兴 | gāo xìng | happy |
| 好命 | hǎo mìng | lucky |
| 好奇 | hàoqí | curious |
| 怀旧 | huáijiù | nostalgic |
| 惊喜 | jīng xǐ | pleasantly surprised |
| 有决心 | yǒu juéxīn | determined |
| 渴望 | kěwàng | craving |
| 快乐 | kuàilè | joyful |
| 浪漫 | làngmàn | romantic |
| 老实 | lǎoshí | honest |
| 乐观 | lè guān | optimistic |
| 恋爱 | liàn’ài | in love |
| 满意 | mǎnyì | satisfied |
| 佩服 | pèifú | to admire |
| 平静 | píngjìng | calm |
| 钦佩 | qīnpèi | admiration |
| 同情 | tóngqíng | sympathy |
| 想要 | xiǎngyào | to want to |
| 喜欢 | xǐhuān | like |
| 欣赏 | xīn shǎng | appreciation |
| 兴奋/激动 | xīngfèn/jīdòng | excited |
| 性欲 | xìngyù | sexual desire |
| 信任 | xìnrèn | trust |
| 有趣 | yǒuqù | funny |
| 有兴趣 | yǒuxìngqù | interested |
| 有希望 | yǒuxīwàng | hopeful |
| 娱乐 | yúlè | amusement |
| 自信 | zì xìn | confident |
Negative Emotions
| Hanzi | Pinyin | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 抱歉 | bàoqiàn | to feel apologetic |
| 悲惨 | bēicǎn | miserable |
| 吃惊 | chījīng | shocked |
| 担心 | dānxīn | worried |
| 饿了 | è le | hungry |
| 尴尬 | gāngà | embarrassed |
| 孤独 | gūdú | lonely |
| 害怕 | hàipà | afraid |
| 害羞 | hàixiū | shy |
| 恨 | hèn | to hate |
| 焦虑 | jiāolǜ | anxious |
| 嫉妒 | jídù | jealous |
| 紧张 | jǐnzhāng | nervous |
| 沮丧 | jǔsàng | disheartened |
| 挫败 | cuòbài | a sense of defeat; frustration |
| 苦闷 | kǔ mèn | depressed |
| 愧疚 | kuì jiù | guilty |
| 困惑 | kùnhuò | confused |
| 忙 | máng | busy |
| 难过 | nánguò | sad |
| 闹心 | nào xīn | upset |
| 伤心 | shāngxīn | hurt |
| 生气 | shēng qì | angry |
| 失望 | shīwàng | disappointed |
| 讨厌 | tǎoyàn | to dislike |
| 无聊 | wúliáo | bored |
| 想念 | xiǎngniàn | to miss |
| 羞愧 | xiūkuì | ashamed |
| 厌恶 | yàn wù | disgusted |
| 遗憾 | yíhàn | to regret |
Grammar
Now that you have learned some words to describe emotions in Chinese, it’s time to learn how to construct sentences using these words.
With many adjectival predicates, 很 (hěn) introduces a description and can mean “very”, especially when stressed. 不 (bù) negates a word; it is not a replacement meaning a negative emotional tone. 我很难过 describes sadness even though it uses 很. Verbs such as 信任 and 想念 take different patterns from adjectives.
SBJ + hěn 很 / bù 不 + (feeling/emotion) + OBJ*
*placing an object at the end will depend on the sentence you’re trying to construct
Examples:
lǎoshī hěngāoxìng老师 很高兴The teacher is happy.
tóngxué men bù xǐhuan lǎoshī同学 们 不 喜欢 老师My classmates do not like the teacher.
wáng yīshēng hěn máng王 医生 很 忙Doctor Wang is busy.
Ālǐ bù dānxīn阿里 不 担心Ali is not worried.
有点 (yǒudiǎn) means “a little” and commonly introduces a mildly unwelcome state, such as 有点累 or 有点担心. It can also soften other statements in context; do not apply it mechanically to every item in the vocabulary list.
SBJ + yǒudiǎn 有点 + (feeling/emotion) + OBJ*
*placing an object at the end will depend on the sentence you’re trying to construct
Examples:
wǒ yǒudiǎn xǐhuan shàngkè我 有点 喜欢 上课I like the class a little.
Dàwèi yǒudiǎn hàipà大卫 有点 害怕David is a little scared.
Mǎlì yǒudiǎn kùnhuò玛丽 有点 困惑Marie is a little confused.
dìdi yǒudiǎn nánguò弟弟 有点 难过Little brother is a little sad.
To add strong emphasis, you can use 太 (tài) …了(le) to express “so” or “too”, depending on context.
SBJ + tài 太 + (feeling/emotion) + le* 了
Examples:
bàba tài è le爸爸 太 饿 了Dad’s too hungry.
tā de nǚpéngyou tài shēngqì le他 的 女朋友 太 生气 了His girlfriend’s too angry.
nǐ tài jǐnzhāng le你 太 紧张 了You’re too nervous.
tā tài jīdòng le她 太 激动 了She is very excited.
xuésheng tài gāoxìng le学生 太 高兴 了The student is so happy.
Some feeling words function as verbs, so they can take an object directly: 我信任你 (I trust you), 妈妈想念她 (Mom misses her). 很 is an adverb, not an adjective placed between two other words.
Examples:
wǒ jídù dà jiějie我 嫉妒 大 姐姐
I’m jealous of older sister.
wǒ xìnrèn nǐ我 信任 你I trust you.
tā liàn’ài le她 恋爱 了She’s in love.
nǐ dānxīn tā你 担心 他You worry about him.
māma xiǎngniàn tā妈妈 想念 她Mom misses her.
Practice
Now that you’ve learned some words to express emotions in Chinese, it’s time for you to practice!
Try to translate the given English sentences using the correct grammar and right words.
1. Little brother’s friend is sad.2. The boyfriend is too romantic.3. Mom’s a little worried.4. The doctor is very tired.5. Little brother misses his older sister.
Learning Tip
One way of keeping learning Chinese interesting by watching Chinese dramas, movies, or reality TV programs. This way you will hear right pronunciation of words, learn new words, and still be entertained. An advantage you will get from watching TV reality programs is that you will learn colloquial words or expressions that are not usually in text books.Keep learning Chinese and enjoy!
Correct Answers
1) dìdi de péngyou hěn nánguò弟弟 的 朋友 很 难过
2) nánpéngyou tài làngmàn le男朋友 太 浪漫 了3) māma yǒudiǎn dānxīn妈妈 有点 担心4) yīshēng hěn lèi医生 很 累5) dìdi xiǎngniàn tā de jiějie弟弟 想念 他 的 姐姐
