快
fast; quick; soon
HSK level
- Pinyin
- kuài
- Part of speech
- adjective
- Level
- HSK 2
- Strokes
- 7
- Register
- neutral
- In episodes
- 1
Stroke order for 快
快 is written with 7 strokes. The animation replays automatically.
What does 快 mean?
快 (kuài) primarily means 'fast / quick' as an adjective: 他跑得很快 ('he runs very fast'), 这辆车很快 ('this car is fast').
Two extensions are everyday: (1) 'soon / about to' as an adverb signaling imminent time — 快到了 ('almost there'), 快下雨了 ('it's about to rain'), often paired with 了 at the end; (2) 'hurry up!' as an imperative — 快来 ('come quickly'), 快走 ('hurry, let's go'). In speed comparisons it pairs naturally with 慢 (màn, 'slow'): 快 / 慢. As a verb complement it follows 得: 跑得快 ('runs fast'), 学得快 ('learns quickly').
快 is also a feeling-word in 愉快 (yúkuài, 'pleasant') and 快乐 (kuàilè, 'happy') — happiness in Chinese is associated with the briskness of 快. Don't confuse with the homophone 块 (kuài), the measure word for money and a piece of something. The phrase 快快 (reduplicated) means 'quickly, quickly' for urgency: 快快走 ('hurry, hurry, go!').
Hear 快 in real episodes
快 appears in 1 Fluentide podcast episode at natural native speed. Each sentence plays at the easiest difficulty it exists in — switch it to hear the same moment at your level, with full pinyin and English throughout.
他跑得很快，很快，很快。
He ran very, very fast.
Liu Xiang Asked Weibo to Choose for Him: Take the Buyout and Leave the System, or Come Back as a Coach.
Example sentences
他跑得很快。
Tā pǎo de hěn kuài.
He runs very fast.
spoken
快下雨了。
Kuài xià yǔ le.
It's about to rain.
spoken
快点，我们要迟到了。
Kuài diǎn, wǒmen yào chídào le.
Hurry up, we're going to be late.
spoken
这班车很快。
Zhè bān chē hěn kuài.
This train/bus is very fast.
neutral
Common phrases with 快
Synonyms
迅速 is 'rapid / swift' — more formal and written. Use 快 in conversation; use 迅速 in news, reports, and formal writing. 警察迅速到达现场 = 'police rapidly arrived at the scene.'
Don't confuse 快 with
FAQ
Related words from the same episodes
Acquire it by listening
Meet 快 again — in real Chinese, at your level.
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