Chinese Vocabulary Drill with 试 (shì) - To try

Today’s word of the day is 试 (shì) which means ‘to try’. Let’s practice by making different words, phrases, and sentences with 试 (shì).

试验 (shìyàn) Trial

The first word is 试验 (shìyàn) which is a noun that means trial. Let’s look at each character of this word, 试 means ‘to try’ and 验 means test. A way of using it in a sentence is 我们需要做一些试验来测试这个新产品的效果。(Wǒmen xūyào zuò yīxiē shìyàn lái cèshì zhège xīn chǎnpǐn de xiàoguǒ.) We need to conduct some trials to test the effectiveness of this new product.

试题 (shìtí) Test question

Another word we can create with 试 (shì) is 试题 (shìtí). This means ‘test question’. A way of using it in a sentence is 这次考试的试题非常有挑战性。(Zhè cì kǎoshì de shìtí fēicháng yǒu tiǎozhàn xìng.) The test questions in this exam are quite challenging.

试演 (shìyǎn) Rehearsal

Finally, we can create the word 试演 (shìyǎn) which means rehearsal (for a performance). The 演 here means performance. A way of using it in a sentence is 明天晚上有一个重要的音乐会试演。(Míngtiān wǎnshàng yǒu yīgè zhòngyào de yīnyuèhuì shìyǎn.) There will be an important music concert rehearsal tomorrow night.