本质本質 běnzhì — essence, essential nature
běnzhì (third tone, dipping)ben3zhi4
Traditional: 本質
essence, essential nature
HSK 5· HSK 1–6 (classic)Level 6· 2021 three-band, nine-level proficiency standardnoun
Meanings
essence, essential nature
What a thing is underneath what it looks like. It is the standing opposite of 表面, and the pair is how Chinese frames almost every argument about appearances: 表面上…，本质上…
noun
Example sentences
- 表面上是小事，本质上是大问题。表面上是小事，本質上是大問題。Biǎomiàn (third tone, dipping) shàng (fourth tone, falling) shì (fourth tone, falling) xiǎo (third tone, dipping) shì, (fourth tone, falling) běnzhì (third tone, dipping) shàng (fourth tone, falling) shì (fourth tone, falling) dà (fourth tone, falling) wèntí. (fourth tone, falling)···
On the surface it is a small matter; in essence it is a big problem.
- 我们要看清问题的本质。我們要看清問題的本質。Wǒmen (third tone, dipping) yào (fourth tone, falling) kàn (fourth tone, falling) qīng (first tone, high and level) wèntí (fourth tone, falling) de (neutral tone) běnzhì. (third tone, dipping)···
We need to see the essence of the problem clearly.