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HSK 4

传真

fax; to fax

nounneutral
chuán2nd tone
zhēn1st tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
5
6
Pinyin
chuánzhēn
Part of speech
noun
Level
HSK 4
Strokes
16
Register
neutral
Measure word
份 / 台

Stroke order for 传真

传真 is written with 16 strokes (: 6, : 10). The animation replays automatically.

What does 传真 mean?

传真 (chuánzhēn) is a noun meaning 'fax' — both the technology of transmitting document images over phone lines and the received document itself.

It can also work as a verb, 'to fax' (传真给我, 'fax it to me'). The machine is 传真机 (chuánzhēnjī). Because Chinese uses one word for the noun, the verb, and the medium, English speakers don't need separate 'a fax' versus 'to fax' forms — context and grammar carry the difference.

The characters literally mean 'transmit truth/likeness,' reflecting that a fax reproduces an exact image of the original. 传真 is neutral in register and lives mainly in business, government, and administrative settings; in casual life it is now largely replaced by scanning and messaging, but the vocabulary is still tested and used formally.

Note: Mostly appears in office, business, and official contexts. As technology it now sounds slightly dated, but the word remains standard for the machine, the transmission, and the document.

Character by character

chuánto transmit; to pass on
+
zhēntrue; real; likeness
=
传真

Memory hook: 传 (transmit) + 真 (true likeness): to transmit a true copy of a document — a fax.

Example sentences

请把合同传真给我。

Qǐng bǎ hétong chuánzhēn gěi wǒ.

Please fax the contract to me.

neutral

我们公司还有一台传真机。

Wǒmen gōngsī hái yǒu yì tái chuánzhēnjī.

Our company still has a fax machine.

neutral

你的传真号码是多少?

Nǐ de chuánzhēn hàomǎ shì duōshao?

What's your fax number?

spoken

这份传真今天早上才收到。

Zhè fèn chuánzhēn jīntiān zǎoshang cái shōudào.

This fax was only received this morning.

written

Common phrases with 传真

传真机chuánzhēnjīfax machine
发传真fā chuánzhēnsend a fax
收传真shōu chuánzhēnreceive a fax
传真号码chuánzhēn hàomǎfax number

Don't confuse 传真 with

传统chuántǒng

传统 means 'tradition / traditional.' It shares but has nothing to do with sending documents. Don't let the shared first character blur the meanings.

认真rènzhēn

认真 means 'serious / conscientious.' It shares with 传真 but describes an attitude, not a fax. The characters overlap; the meanings do not.

FAQ

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