Chinese word dictionary

或是

huòshì · or; either one or the other

Practice word

Word information

Simplified或是

Traditional或是

Pinyinhuòshì

Part of speech副、连

HSK 3.05

HSK 2.0Not listed

Character breakdown

Study each Hanzi separately, then return to the complete word so pronunciation, meaning, and movement stay connected.

或huò

or, either, else; maybe, perhaps, possibly

是shì

to be; yes

How to learn 或是

Listen once without reading, repeat the pinyin with its tones, then write every character in sequence. Finally, recall the complete meaning instead of memorizing each character as an isolated translation.

When the word appears in a sentence, check whether its part of speech and meaning match the definition shown here. Chinese words can change nuance with context.

Related vocabulary

Words with the same characters

Compare how a familiar Hanzi changes meaning inside another word.

是shì

to be (followed by substantives only); correct; right; true; (respectful acknowledgement of a command) very well; (adverb for emphatic assertion); variant of 是[shi4]

但是dànshì

but; however

还是háishi

still (as before); had better; unexpectedly; or

或huò

maybe; perhaps; might; possibly; or

或者huòzhě

or; possibly; maybe; perhaps

可是kěshì

but; however; (used for emphasis) indeed