就是...的意思
Use this when you are defining a word, phrase, or idiom. 就是 says 'is precisely,' and 的意思 means 'the meaning.' Glue them around the definition and you get 'means precisely [definition].' This is the everyday way teachers, friends, and dictionaries-via-people explain what something means. Common in conversation when you have just used a word the listener doesn't know.
Structure
[TERM] 就是 [DEFINITION] 的意思
... jiùshì ... de yìsi
How to Think About It
The 就是 here is the emphatic 'is precisely / amounts to,' not a sequence marker. It tells the listener 'this is the exact rendering, no fuzz.' Then 的意思 at the very end wraps the definition as a noun phrase. The whole frame is X 就是 [paraphrase] 的意思 — read it as 'X is precisely [paraphrase]'s meaning.' In English you would say 'X means Y'; Chinese inverts that into '[X] [precisely-is] [Y]['s meaning],' with the 的意思 doing the wrapping work.
Examples
"加油"就是鼓励别人的意思。
"jiāyóu" jiùshì gǔlì biérén de yìsi.
'Jiayou' means encouraging someone.
他说"算了"，就是不想再讨论的意思。
tā shuō "suàn le", jiùshì bù xiǎng zài tǎolùn de yìsi.
When he says 'forget it,' he means he doesn't want to discuss it anymore.
"差不多"就是大概可以的意思。
"chàbuduō" jiùshì dàgài kěyǐ de yìsi.
'Chabuduo' means roughly okay.
Common Mistake
Learners drop 的意思 and just write 就是 + paraphrase, which works for simple equivalences but loses the explicit definition feel. '告上法院就是让法院判' sounds like a paraphrase; '告上法院就是让法院判的意思' explicitly frames it as a definition — which is what you want when teaching or explaining vocabulary.
这个词就是开心。
这个词就是开心的意思。
Don't Confuse With
...的意思是...
Inverted order — 'X's meaning is Y.' Same definitional purpose, different word order. Use 的意思是 when you want to lead with X and reveal Y at the end; use 就是...的意思 when you want the definition packaged in a single breath.
...意思是...
Drop 的, and it sounds slightly choppier — common in casual definition but less polished. 就是...的意思 is smoother.
就是说...
'In other words / what I mean is...' — a transition phrase, not a definition. Use 就是说 to rephrase your own statement, not to define a term.
Practice
Fill the blank: "打卡"就是去某个地方拍照分享____意思。
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的
Fill the blank: "没问题"____是可以的意思。
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就
Arrange: 就是 / 高兴 / 的意思 / "开心"
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"开心"就是高兴的意思。
Translate to Chinese: 'Mafan' means troublesome.
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"麻烦"就是不方便的意思。
Write a sentence defining a Chinese word using 就是...的意思.
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"靠谱"就是值得信任的意思。
Hear It in Real Episodes
This pattern appears in 1 Fluentide episode: