动 dòng — to use; to act; to move; to change
风一吹，树叶就动了。Fēng yì chuī, shù yè jiù dòng le.When the wind blew, the leaves moved.
Common words: 动作 (dòng zuò)、活动 (huó dòng)、行动 (xíng dòng)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to change"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to change", including 动 (dòng), 更 (gēng / gèng), 变 (biàn), 改 (gǎi), 倒 (dǎo / dào), 移 (yí). Study pinyin…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to change" covers 6 different Chinese characters — 动 (dòng), 更 (gēng / gèng), 变 (biàn), 改 (gǎi), 倒 (dǎo / dào), 移 (yí) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 6 characters do not share a sound — their readings span dòng, gēng, gèng, biàn, gǎi, dǎo, and more — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 动 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 动 dòngto use; to act; to move; to changeUseful words: 动作, 活动
- 更 gēng / gèngto change; more; even more; further; still; still moreUseful words: 更加, 更新
- 变 biànto change; to become different; to transform; to vary; rebellionUseful words: 改变, 变成
- 改 gǎito change; to alter; to transform; to correctUseful words: 改变, 改造
- 倒 dǎo / dàoto fall; to collapse; to topple; to change; to fail; bankruptUseful words: 倒闭, 倒车
Common words for these 6 "to change" characters
Anchor each of these 6 characters in a word you can picture — start with 动 (dòng) — so "to change" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
动作dòng zuòmovement; motion; action; to act活动huó dòngto exercise; to move about; to work out; shaky行动xíng dòngoperation; action; to move about; mobile更加gèng jiāmore (than sth else); even more更新gēng xīnto replace the old with new; to renew; to renovate; to upgrade更换gēng huànto replace (a worn-out tire etc); to change (one's address etc)改变gǎi biànto change; to alter; to transform变成biàn chéngto change into; to turn into; to become变化biàn huà(intransitive) to change; to vary; change; variation改变gǎi biànto change; to alter; to transform
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 6 ways to say "to change".
更 gēng / gèng — to change; more; even more; further; still; still more
今天比昨天更冷。Jīn tiān bǐ zuó tiān gèng lěng.Today is even colder than yesterday.
Common words: 更加 (gèng jiā)、更新 (gēng xīn)、更换 (gēng huàn)
变 biàn — to change; to become different; to transform; to vary; rebellion
天气变得越来越暖和了。Tiān qì biàn de yuè lái yuè nuǎn huo le.The weather is getting warmer and warmer.
Common words: 改变 (gǎi biàn)、变成 (biàn chéng)、变化 (biàn huà)
改 gǎi — to change; to alter; to transform; to correct
老师正在帮我改作文。Lǎo shī zhèng zài bāng wǒ gǎi zuò wén.The teacher is helping me correct my essay.
Common words: 改变 (gǎi biàn)、改造 (gǎi zào)、修改 (xiū gǎi)
倒 dǎo / dào — to fall; to collapse; to topple; to change; to fail; bankrupt
请帮我倒一杯水。Qǐng bāng wǒ dào yì bēi shuǐ.Please pour me a glass of water.
Common words: 倒闭 (dǎo bì)、倒车 (dǎo chē)、倒是 (dào shi)
移 yí — to move; to shift; to change; to alter; to remove
请帮我把桌子往左移一点儿。Qǐng bāng wǒ bǎ zhuō zi wǎng zuǒ yí yì diǎnr.Please help me move the table a little to the left.
Common words: 移动 (yí dòng)、转移 (zhuǎn yí)、移民 (yí mín)
All 6 characters
Open 动、更、变 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.