内

內
nèi
HSK 4
#175 most
frequent character
inside, inner, internal, within
adjective
preposition

Character breakdown

Source: Make Me a Hanzi.

内 shows a person 人 inside a building 冂, so it first meant 'to enter a building'. The building part was once written 宀. The meaning grew to 'to enter' and then 'inside, inner'.

内 as a component in other characters

sound9 characters
纳呐钠讷芮衲蚋肭枘
picture1 character
呙

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Example Sentences

他在内心深处感到不安。
tāzài nèixīn shēnchǔ gǎndào bùān 。
He feels uneasy deep inside.
这个盒子里有很多内衣。
zhègè hézǐ lǐ yǒu hěnduō nèiyī 。
There are a lot of underwear inside this box.
她的内心非常强大。
tāde nèixīn fēicháng qiángdà 。
Her inner self is very strong.

Grammar Points

HSK 5
Expressing "within" a period of time using "zai... nei"在…内
HSK 5
Defining upper and lower limits

Words with similar meanings

内部nèibù
internal
More formal and specific to the context of being in the interior or inner part of something.
里面lǐmiàn
inside
Colloquial term that is commonly used to indicate being within something.

Words Starting With 内

内容nèi róng
"content; substance; details
内科nèi kē
"medicine; ""internal"" medicine, i.e. treatment by administering drugs, as opposed to surgical intervention 外科[wai4 ke1]; medical department"
内在nèi zài
intrinsic; innate
内幕nèi mù
inside story; non-public information; behind the scenes; internal
内涵nèi hán
meaning; content; essential properties implied or reflected by a notion; intention; connotation; self-possessed

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Public Lists with 内

Directions & Location
Above, below, left, right, inside, outside, near, far, north, south, etc.
Feelings & Emotions
Vocabulary for happiness, sadness, anger, fear, love, excitement, etc.
HSK 4
All words for the HSK 4 test