HSK 5
反而
fǎn'ér
actually (opposite)
Structure
Situation A / Expectation, (不但不/不仅没) + 反而 + Situation B (Unexpected outcome)
How it works
"反而" (fǎn'ér) is an adverb used to express that the result or situation is the opposite of what was expected or previous conditions implied. It often appears in the second clause of a sentence to emphasize a shift from the logical or anticipated outcome, sometimes following words like "不仅没..." (not only not...).
Examples
风不仅没停，反而越刮越大了。
Fēng bùjǐn méi tíng, fǎn'ér yuè guā yuè dà le.
The wind didn't stop; on the contrary, it started blowing harder and harder.
听了你的解释，我反而更糊涂了。
Tīngle nǐ de jiěshì, wǒ fǎn'ér gèng hútu le.
After hearing your explanation, I'm actually even more confused.
经常批评孩子，反而会让孩子失去信心。
Jīngcháng pīpíng háizi, fǎn'ér huì ràng háizi shīqù xìnxīn.
Criticizing a child frequently will actually cause them to lose confidence.
Common mistakes
Users often confuse '反而' with '但是' (but). While '但是' shows general contrast, '反而' must specifically indicate a result that goes against a previous premise or expectation.
Tip
If you are using '反而' to contrast two actions, look for '不但不' (búdàn bù) or '没' (méi) in the first clause to create the 'Instead of X, Y happened' structure.
More HSK 5 grammar
See 反而 in real Chinese
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