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往往

wǎng wǎng

Old HSK 4 HSK 3.0 level 4 2-character word

往往 (wǎng wǎng) means "often; tend to". It is an HSK 3.0 level 4 word, and was HSK 4 in the old six-level list.

What 往往 means

1. usually
2. in many cases
3. more often than not

How 往往 is used in grammar

往往 is a grammar word. Each link goes to its own section: what it does in that pattern, the structure, three example sentences with pinyin, and the mistake to avoid.

• Frequency Adverbs: 通常, 往往, 总是 (HSK 3)

The official HSK 3.0 grammar outline lists it at level 4, adverbs (频率副词).

The characters in 往往

• 往wǎngto go (in a direction); to; towards
• 往wǎngto go (in a direction); to; towards

Example sentences

• 富人往往看低穷人。
  Fùrén wǎngwǎng kàn dī qióngrén.
  The rich are apt to look down upon the poor.
• 他开会往往会迟到。
  He tends to be late for meetings.
• 她往往会上学迟到。
  She tends to be late for school.
• 红发的人往往有雀斑。
  Hóngfà de rén wǎngwǎng yǒu quèbān.
  Red-haired people tend to have freckles.
• 温度计往往低于零度。
  Wēndùjì wǎngwǎng dīyú língdù.
  Thermometers often go below zero.
• 富人往往瞧不起穷人。
  The rich are apt to look down upon the poor.

Where 往往 is taught

In the GraphChinese course it is part of Time adverbs & temporal expressions (HSK 4), each one a topic in the dependency graph of HSK 1–6 that opens only once its prerequisites are solid.

Go deeper

• Every HSK 4 word, with the rest of its level.
• The four tones and the neutral tone, to read wǎng wǎng correctly.
• Look up another word in the free dictionary.