欢迎
to welcome; welcome!
huānyíng
What does 欢迎 mean?
欢迎 (huānyíng) is a verb meaning 'to welcome,' and by extension the standalone greeting 'welcome!' shouted as guests arrive or printed on shop signs. Literally 'joy-greet,' it captures the warm hospitality nuance well. Three patterns English speakers should learn: first, it works as a transitive verb — 欢迎你 'we welcome you,' 欢迎大家 'welcome everyone'; second, it doubles up for emphatic warmth — 欢迎欢迎! is a common spoken greeting when you really want to make someone feel welcome; third, it forms invitation patterns — 欢迎光临 'welcome (formal, in shops),' 欢迎再来 'come again.' Unlike English 'welcome,' Chinese 欢迎 is rarely used as the response to 'thank you' (that's 不客气). Don't say 欢迎 when someone thanks you — it sounds odd.
Note: Polite by default. Common as both a verb (we welcome you) and a standalone greeting on signs and at entrances.
Character breakdown
joyful; happy
to greet; to welcome; to face
Memory hook: Joy + greet = welcome someone with happiness.
Example sentences
欢迎你来我家！
Huānyíng nǐ lái wǒ jiā!
Welcome to my home!
spoken
欢迎光临，请这边坐。
Huānyíng guānglín, qǐng zhèbiān zuò.
Welcome, please sit over here.
polite, shop/restaurant
我们都很欢迎你加入。
Wǒmen dōu hěn huānyíng nǐ jiārù.
We all warmly welcome you to join.
neutral
欢迎再来！
Huānyíng zài lái!
Please come again!
spoken
Common phrases with 欢迎
Hear it in real Fluentide episodes
欢迎 appears in 1 podcast episode at natural native speed, with full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
Synonyms
迎接 is 'to go meet / receive someone' — about the physical act of going to greet an arriving guest (到机场迎接客人 'meet the guest at the airport'). 欢迎 is about expressing welcome verbally or in feeling. You 迎接 someone, then 欢迎 them.
接 means 'to pick up / receive' (接朋友 'pick up a friend'). It's the practical act. 欢迎 is the expressed sentiment. They often pair: 我去机场接她，欢迎她来中国 (I'll pick her up at the airport and welcome her to China).
Don't confuse 欢迎 with
Beginners often translate English 'you're welcome' literally and try 欢迎 as a response to thanks. Wrong. The reply to 谢谢 is 不客气 or 不用谢 — never 欢迎.
请 means 'please' or 'to invite.' 请进 'please come in' and 欢迎 'welcome' often appear together but mean different things. 请 is the verb of polite invitation; 欢迎 is the warm reception that follows.