明白
HSK 3 (exam 2025)HSK 1 (2021)Old HSK 3
明白 (míngbai) · to understand
明白 (míngbai) means “to understand; clear”. It is written with 2 characters: 明 (bright) + 白 (white). It is an HSK 3 word in the current exam syllabus (2025).
How 明白 is built
The characters
明 míng · bright
What 明 is made of
- 日rì — sun; day
- 口kǒu — mouth
- 冂 — frame
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 口kǒu — mouth
- 月yuè — moon; month
- 冂 — frame
- 丨 — vertical stroke
- 二 — two strokes
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 冂 — frame
Origin hint: The light of the sun 日 and moon 月 (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
白 bái · white
What 白 is made of
- 日rì — sun; day
- 口kǒu — mouth
- 冂 — frame
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 一 — horizontal stroke
- 口kǒu — mouth
Origin hint: A burning candle; the rays of the sun (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
Example sentences
我明白了。Wǒ míngbai le.I understand now.
你明白了吗？Nǐ míngbai le ma?Do you understand?
Questions about 明白
What does 明白 mean?
明白 (míngbai) means “to understand; clear”.
How do you pronounce 明白?
明白 is pronounced míngbai.
Which HSK level is 明白?
明白 is in HSK 3 (exam 2025) and HSK 1 (2021) and Old HSK 3.
Related words
- 明年míngniánnext year
- 明天míngtiāntomorrow
- 明星míngxīngstar
- 说明shuōmíngto explain
- 表明biǎomíngto show
- 发明fāmíngto invent
- 光明guāngmíngbright
- 明确míngquèclear
- 明显míngxiǎnobvious
- 声明shēngmíngstatement
Learn 明白 with its group
It is part of HSK 1 (2021) · Group 49: a short group with quick checks and spaced repeats.