方 fāng — square; quadrilateral; direction; just
请问，火车站在哪个方向？Qǐng wèn, huǒ chē zhàn zài nǎ ge fāng xiàng?Excuse me, which direction is the train station?
Common words: 地方 (dì fāng)、方法 (fāng fǎ)、方面 (fāng miàn)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "just"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "just", including 方 (fāng), 公 (gōng), 正 (zhēng / zhèng), 刚 (gāng), 临 (lín), 恰 (qià). Study pinyin…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "just" covers 8 different Chinese characters — 方 (fāng), 公 (gōng), 正 (zhēng / zhèng), 刚 (gāng), 临 (lín), 恰 (qià), 允 (yǔn), 甫 (fǔ) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 8 characters do not share a sound — their readings span fāng, gōng, zhēng, zhèng, gāng, lín, and more — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 方 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 方 fāngsquare; quadrilateral; direction; justUseful words: 地方, 方法
- 公 gōngjust; honorable (designation); public; commonUseful words: 公司, 办公室
- 正 zhēng / zhèngChinese 1st month of year; just (right); main; upright; straight; correctUseful words: 正在, 真正
- 刚 gānghard; firm; strong; just; barely; exactlyUseful words: 刚刚, 刚才
- 临 línto face; to overlook; to arrive; to be (just) about to; just beforeUseful words: 面临, 临时
Common words for these 8 "just" characters
Anchor each of these 8 characters in a word you can picture — start with 方 (fāng) — so "just" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
地方dì fāngregion; regional (away from the central administration); local方法fāng fǎmethod; way; technique; procedure方面fāng miànrespect; aspect; field; side公司gōng sīcompany; firm; corporation办公室bàn gōng shìoffice; business premises公园gōng yuánpark (for public recreation)正在zhèng zàito be in the process of (doing sth); to be currently ...-ing真正zhēn zhènggenuine; real; true; really正常zhèng chángnormal; regular刚刚gāng gangjust recently; just a moment ago
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 8 ways to say "just".
公 gōng — just; honorable (designation); public; common
我们坐公共汽车去上班。Wǒ men zuò gōng gòng qì chē qù shàng bān.We take the bus to work.
Common words: 公司 (gōng sī)、办公室 (bàn gōng shì)、公园 (gōng yuán)
正 zhēng / zhèng — Chinese 1st month of year; just (right); main; upright; straight; correct
他正在打电话。Tā zhèng zài dǎ diàn huà.He is making a phone call.
Common words: 正在 (zhèng zài)、真正 (zhēn zhèng)、正常 (zhèng cháng)
刚 gāng — hard; firm; strong; just; barely; exactly
我刚到家就下雨了。Wǒ gāng dào jiā jiù xià yǔ le.It started raining as soon as I got home.
Common words: 刚刚 (gāng gang)、刚才 (gāng cái)、刚好 (gāng hǎo)
临 lín — to face; to overlook; to arrive; to be (just) about to; just before
临走前，他和大家一一道别。Lín zǒu qián, tā hé dà jiā yī yī dào bié.Before leaving, he said goodbye to everyone one by one.
Common words: 面临 (miàn lín)、临时 (lín shí)、光临 (guāng lín)
恰 qià — exactly; just
我到车站的时候，恰好赶上了公交车。Wǒ dào chē zhàn de shí hou, qià hǎo gǎn shàng le gōng jiāo chē.When I got to the bus stop, I caught the bus just in time.
Common words: 恰恰 (qià qià)、恰当 (qià dàng)、恰好 (qià hǎo)
允 yǔn — just; fair; to permit; to allow
妈妈允许我周末多玩一会儿。Mā ma yǔn xǔ wǒ zhōu mò duō wán yí huìr.Mom allows me to play a little longer on weekends.
Common words: 允许 (yǔn xǔ)、允当 (yǔn dàng)、公允 (gōng yǔn)
甫 fǔ — just; just now
杜甫是唐代一位伟大的诗人。Dù Fǔ shì Táng dài yí wèi wěi dà de shī rén.Du Fu was a great poet of the Tang Dynasty.
Common words: 甫一 (fǔ yī)、台甫 (tái fǔ)、惊魂甫定 (jīng hún fǔ dìng)
All 8 characters
Open 方、公、正 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.