下午
HSK 1 (exam 2025)HSK 1 (2021)Old HSK 1
下午 (xiàwǔ) · afternoon
下午 (xiàwǔ) means “afternoon”. It is written with 2 characters: 下 (down) + 午 (noon). It is an HSK 1 word in the current exam syllabus (2025).
How 下午 is built
The characters
下 xià · down
What 下 is made of
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 卜bo — divination
- 丨 — vertical stroke
- 丶 — dot
Origin hint: One stroke under another; compare 上 (above) (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
午 wǔ · noon
What 午 is made of
- 丿 — falling stroke
- 干gàn — dry (gān)
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 十 — ten
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 丨 — vertical stroke
Example sentences
我下午去图书馆。Wǒ xiàwǔ qù túshūguǎn.I'm going to the library this afternoon.
你明天下午有时间吗？Nǐ míngtiān xiàwǔ yǒu shíjiān ma?Are you free tomorrow afternoon?
Questions about 下午
What does 下午 mean?
下午 (xiàwǔ) means “afternoon”.
How do you pronounce 下午?
下午 is pronounced xiàwǔ.
Which HSK level is 下午?
下午 is in HSK 1 (exam 2025) and HSK 1 (2021) and Old HSK 1.
Related words
- 楼下lóuxiàdownstairs
- 下班xiàbānto finish work
- 下边xiàbianbelow
- 下车xiàchēto get off a vehicle
- 下次xiàcìnext time
- 下课xiàkèto finish class
- 下雨xiàyǔto rain
- 一下儿yīxiàra little while
- 坐下zuòxiato sit down
- 放下fàngxiàto put down
Learn 下午 with its group
It is part of HSK 1 (2021) · Group 49: a short group with quick checks and spaced repeats.