大概

dàgài

adverb HSK 3 #671

Meanings

1 roughly
2 probably
3 approximate

Characters

big; large; general

general; approximate

In broad terms — roughly.

Examples

大概要两个小时。

Dàgài yào liǎng gè xiǎoshí.

It takes roughly two hours.

他大概不会来了。

Tā dàgài bú huì lái le.

He probably won't come.

你大概了解情况了吗？

Nǐ dàgài liǎojiě qíngkuàng le ma?

Do you roughly understand the situation?

Tips

usage

大概 (probably/roughly) implies estimation. Compare with 大约 (dàyuē, approximately) which is more specifically about numbers, and 可能 (kěnéng, maybe) which expresses pure possibility.

Stroke Order

大 dà

概 gài