实则

實則

shízé

adverb #31,419

Meanings

1 actually
2 in fact
3 in reality
4 but in truth

Characters

real; true; actual

then; (classical) but

Examples

他看起来很冷淡，实则非常关心你。

Tā kàn qǐlái hěn lěngdàn, shízé fēicháng guānxīn nǐ.

He looks indifferent, but in fact he cares about you very much.

这件事看似简单，实则复杂。

Zhè jiàn shì kàn sì jiǎndān, shízé fùzá.

This matter seems simple, but is actually complex.

Tips

register

实则 is bookish — it's the formal/written counterpart of 其实 (qíshí) and 实际上 (shíjì shang). Most natural in essays and news, almost always after a contrastive setup like 看似 X 实则 Y ('seems X, but is actually Y').

Stroke Order

实 shí

则 zé