实际

Etymology & Components

The Chinese word 实际 (shíjì) is composed of two characters: 实 (shí) and 际 (jì). The character 实 originally meant "full" or "solid", and later came to mean "real" or "actual". The character 际 originally meant "edge" or "boundary", and later came to mean "situation" or "circumstance". When combined, the two characters 实际 mean "actual situation" or "reality".The word 实际 is often used in contrast to the word 理论 (lǐlùn), which means "theory". While 理论 refers to abstract ideas or principles, 实际 refers to the concrete reality of a situation. For example, we might say that a theory is good in 理论 but not in 实际, meaning that it works well in theory but not in practice.The word 实际 can also be used to mean "practical" or "pragmatic". For example, we might say that a person is 实际 if they are more interested in practical matters than in abstract ideas.The word 实际 is a common word in Chinese, and it is used in a variety of contexts. It is an important word to know for HSK learners, as it is used in many different ways.