Today’s word of the day is 近 (jìn) which means ‘near’. Let’s practice by making different words, phrases, and sentences with 近 (jìn).
近年 (jìn nián) Recent years
The first word is 近年 (jìn nián) which means ‘recent years’. Let’s look at each character of this word, 近 means ‘near’ and 年 means ‘year’. A way of using it in a sentence is 近年来，城市发生了许多变化。(Jìn nián lái, chéngshì fāshēng le xǔduō biànhuà.) In recent years, the city has undergone many changes.
最近 (zuìjìn) Recently
Another word we can create with 近 (jìn) is 最近 (zuìjìn). This means recently. Let’s again look at each character of this word, 最 means ‘most’ and 近 ‘near’. A way of using it in a sentence is 最近天气变化很大，时冷时热的，让人感到不舒服。(Zuìjìn tiānqì biànhuà hěn dà, shí lěng shí rè de, ràng rén gǎndào bù shūfu.) Recently, the weather has been changing a lot, sometimes cold and sometimes hot, making people uncomfortable.
附近 (fùjìn) Nearby
Finally, we can create the word 附近 (fùjìn) which means ‘nearby’. A way of using it in a sentence is 我家附近有一家很不错的咖啡馆，我们经常去那里喝咖啡。(Wǒ jiā fùjìn yǒu yī jiā hěn búcuò de kāfēi guǎn, wǒmen jīngcháng qù nàlǐ hē kāfēi.) There's a nice café near my house, and we often go there for coffee.