{"id":3128,"date":"2019-11-03T14:30:06","date_gmt":"2019-11-03T14:30:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chinesemoment.com\/chinese-grammar\/chinese-grammarthe-difference-between-zhi-dao-ren-shi-in-chinese\/"},"modified":"2019-11-03T14:30:06","modified_gmt":"2019-11-03T14:30:06","slug":"chinese-grammarthe-difference-between-zhi-dao-ren-shi-in-chinese","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chinesemoment.com\/vi\/chinese-grammarthe-difference-between-zhi-dao-ren-shi-in-chinese\/","title":{"rendered":"Chinese grammar\uff1aThe difference between \u77e5\u9053 & \u8ba4\u8bc6 in Chinese"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The particularly thorny issue of \u77e5\u9053 (zh\u012bdào) versus \u8ba4\u8bc6 (rènshi). Both approximately hover around the English “to know”, but there are very im<\/em>portant differences between the two.<\/p>\n

There are certain circumstances wher usage might be interchangeable, but more often than not you’ll want to be careful which you use. If you are truly looking to impress your Chinese friends or teacher with your progress, nail this distinction!<\/p>\n

Let’s take a look at each word separately, with a brief English explanation and a few simple examples. We’ll finish with 3 im<\/em>portant takeaways.<\/p>\n

1. \u77e5\u9053- zh\u012bdào Definition: To know, to be aware of<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you are looking for a default way to say “I know…”, \u77e5\u9053 is usually your best bet. Its range of use and flexibility is broader than \u8ba4\u8bc6. You can use it for facts, objects, or people you aren’t perso<\/em>nally acquainted with, but are aware of or have a general understanding a<\/em>bout.<\/p>\n

Examples:<\/strong><\/p>\n

N\u01d0 z\u011bn me zh\u012bdào?
\u4f60\u600e\u4e48\u77e5\u9053\uff1f<\/div>\n
How do you know?<\/div>\n
T\u0101 zh\u012bdào z\u011bn me yàng shu\u014d s\u0101n zh\u01d2ng y\u01d4yán
\u4ed6\u77e5\u9053\u600e\u4e48\u6837\u8bf4\u4e09\u79cd\u8bed\u8a00<\/div>\n
He knows how to speak 3 languages<\/div>\n
N\u01d0 zh\u012bdào b\u01d0 sài de jié gu\u01d2?
\u4f60\u77e5\u9053\u6bd4\u8d5b\u7684\u7ed3\u679c\uff1f<\/div>\n
Do you know the result of the match?<\/div>\n
W\u01d2 bù zh\u012bdào l\u01ceo sh\u012b de yì si
\u6211\u4e0d\u77e5\u9053\u8001\u5e08\u7684\u610f\u601d<\/div>\n
I don’t know what the teacher means.<\/div>\n
T\u0101 de mù bi\u0101o shì ràng rén zh\u012bdào
\u4ed6\u7684\u76ee\u6807\u662f\u8ba9\u4eba\u77e5\u9053<\/div>\n
His goal is to let people know<\/div>\n

2. \u8ba4\u8bc6- rènshi Definition: To know, understand, be familiar with, to meet (a person)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Using \u8ba4\u8bc6 indicates a degree of familiarity with an object, person, or idea. It implies a level of understanding that goes beyond \u77e5\u9053, and co<\/em>nnotes a level of perso<\/em>nal familiarity.<\/p>\n

Examples:<\/strong><\/p>\n

H\u011bn g\u0101o xìng rènshi n\u01d0!
\u5f88\u9ad8\u5174\u8ba4\u8bc6\u4f60\uff01<\/div>\n
So happy to meet you!<\/div>\n
W\u01d2 men shì zài dàxué rènshi de
\u6211\u4eec\u662f\u5728\u5927\u5b66\u8ba4\u8bc6\u7684<\/div>\n
We met in college<\/div>\n
W\u01d2 rènshi zhè ge hàn zì
\u6211\u8ba4\u8bc6\u8fd9\u4e2a\u6c49\u5b57<\/div>\n
I know this Chinese character<\/div>\n
T\u0101 rènshi dào zhè shì y\u012b jiàn huài shì
\u4ed6\u8ba4\u8bc6\u5230\u8fd9\u662f\u4e00\u4ef6\u574f\u4e8b<\/div>\n
He realized this is a bad thing<\/div>\n
N\u01d0 d\u011bi rènshi dào n\u01d0 de cuò wù
\u4f60\u5f97\u8ba4\u8bc6\u5230\u4f60\u7684\u9519\u8bef<\/div>\n
You must recognize your mistakes<\/div>\n

So…Remember This!<\/p>\n

1) \u77e5\u9053 is probably your “go-to” when expressing “to know”. Somebody tells you not to be late for your appointment? “\u6211\u77e5\u9053!”. Somebody asks you to explain the Higgs boson particle? “\u6211\u4e0d\u77e5\u9053!”.<\/p>\n

2) “Do you know Tom Cruise?” Sure, I’ve heard of Tom Cruise, I’ve seen many of his movies, I casually follow his religious and relatio<\/em>nship exploits online, but I have never perso<\/em>nally met him. Thus, I \u77e5\u9053 Tom Cruise \u662f\u8c01, but don’t \u8ba4\u8bc6 him.<\/p>\n

Similarly, to say “\u6211\u77e5\u9053\u4e0a\u6d77” Means “I’ve heard of Shanghai”, wher “\u6211\u8ba4\u8bc6\u4e0a\u6d77” means “I”m familiar with Shanghai”. You should probably choose the friend who \u8ba4\u8bc6 Shanghai to show you around.<\/p>\n

This is a great example wher the Chinese is more precise than the English!<\/p>\n

3) If you “realize or recognize something”, probably use \u8ba4\u8bc6. If you went through the process of not knowing something, to becoming privy to it, indicate your level of perso<\/em>nal involvement by using \u8ba4\u8bc6.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n