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HSK 1

朋友

friend

nounneutral1 episode
朋
péng2nd tone
友
yǒu3rd tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
5
6
Pinyin
péngyou
Part of speech
noun
Level
HSK 1
Strokes
12
Register
neutral
Measure word
个 / 位
In episodes
1

Stroke order for 朋友

朋友 is written with 12 strokes (朋: 8, 友: 4). The animation replays automatically.

What does 朋友 mean?

朋友 (péngyou) is the standard Chinese word for 'friend' — a person you have a personal, affectionate relationship with.

It covers everything from a close friend to a casual acquaintance, though context narrows the meaning: 好朋友 (hǎo péngyou) is a close friend, 老朋友 (lǎo péngyou) is a long-time friend. Two notes for English speakers: first, the second character 友 is unstressed and pronounced with a neutral tone (you, not yǒu), even though 友 alone is yǒu. Second, 男朋友 (nán péngyou) and 女朋友 (nǚ péngyou) mean 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend' — romantic partners, not just friends who are male or female.

To say 'a male friend (platonic),' Chinese uses 男性朋友 or just specifies 我的朋友. The measure word is 个 in casual speech, 位 when being polite.

Character by character

朋péngcompanion; friend
+
友yǒufriend
=
朋友

Memory hook: Two 月 stuck together in 朋 — two people side by side. 友 shows two hands joined. The whole word doubles up on 'togetherness.'

Hear 朋友 in real episodes

朋友 appears in 1 Fluentide podcast episode at natural native speed — each with the full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.

Jake Climbed El Capitan in 2 Hours 55 Minutes. He Fell While Climbing and Died at 30.朋友 spoken at natural speedbeginner
Browse the full episode library

Example sentences

他是我的好朋友。

Tā shì wǒ de hǎo péngyou.

He's my good friend.

neutral

我有很多中国朋友。

Wǒ yǒu hěn duō Zhōngguó péngyou.

I have a lot of Chinese friends.

spoken

我想交一个新朋友。

Wǒ xiǎng jiāo yí ge xīn péngyou.

I want to make a new friend.

spoken

明天和朋友吃饭。

Míngtiān hé péngyou chīfàn.

Tomorrow I'm eating with a friend.

spoken

Common phrases with 朋友

好朋友hǎo péngyougood friend; close friend
老朋友lǎo péngyouold friend; long-time friend
男朋友nán péngyouboyfriend
女朋友nǚ péngyougirlfriend
交朋友jiāo péngyouto make friends

Synonyms

好友hǎoyǒu

More written/slightly formal, also the default term for 'friend' on Chinese social media platforms (微信好友 'WeChat friend'). 朋友 is the everyday spoken word.

哥们儿gēmenr

Casual northern slang for 'buddy / dude,' used mainly between men. 朋友 is neutral and works for anyone.

Don't confuse 朋友 with

男朋友nán péngyou

男朋友 specifically means 'boyfriend' (romantic partner). Don't say 男朋友 if you just mean 'a friend who is male' — say 我的朋友 (gender doesn't need to be marked).

同学tóngxué

同学 means 'classmate / schoolmate' — defined by shared school, not friendship. A classmate might or might not be a 朋友.

FAQ

Related words from the same episodes

快fast, quick爬to climb山hill, mountain上面the top, above石头stone时间time想to think of, to miss知道to know

Acquire it by listening

Meet 朋友 again — in real Chinese, at your level.

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