回 (huí): to return

Meanings

1 to return
2 to go back
3 to reply

Characters

回

huí

to return; to go back; (measure word for times)

Examples

HSK 1

我要回家。

Wǒ yào huí jiā.

I want to go home.

HSK 1

你什么时候回来？

Nǐ shénme shíhou huílái?

When will you come back?

HSK 1

他还没回我电话。

Tā hái méi huí wǒ diànhuà.

He still hasn't returned my call.

Tips

memory

The character 回 looks like a spiral or a path turning back on itself - visually representing 'return'.

Components

radical

囗 wéi

enclosure; border

Outer enclosure - also 回's indexing radical. Marks the outer boundary of the spiral path. Same enclosing-radical family as 国, 园, 困, 围, 圆 - characters about bounded spaces.

semantic

口 kǒu

mouth; small enclosure

Inner small square - the inside loop of the return-path. Together with the outer 囗 the picture is a path turning back on itself, hence 'return.'

Stroke Order

回 huí

Related Words

回来 huílai HSK 1 #186

to come back / to return (toward speaker)

回去 huíqu HSK 1 #427

to go back / to return (away from speaker)

回到 huídào HSK 1 #675

to return to / to get back to

回家 huíjiā HSK 1 #373

to go home / to return home

回答 huídá HSK 1 #769

to reply / to answer

返回 fǎnhuí HSK 5 #3,816

to return to; to go back / to get back to (a place or state)

回头 huítóu HSK 5 #1,698

to turn one's head; to look back / later; afterwards (colloquial)

回报 huíbào HSK 5 #2,704

to reciprocate; to repay / return; reward; payback

回顾 huígù HSK 5 #3,771

to look back; to review / retrospect

回复 huífù HSK 4 #4,389

to reply; to respond / to recover; to restore