Confusing Chinese characters, compared · LinZi

The character comparator.

The pairs that trip up every learner, stroke by stroke, radical by radical, with real example audio.

Self vs. already: the opening at the bottom is the whole difference (巳, the snake, completes the trio).

Person vs. enter: the strokes diverge at the top.

Not yet vs. end: the horizontal lengths swap the meaning.

Earth vs. scholar: which stroke is longer decides it.

Sun vs. eye: one inner line changes everything.

Great vs. too: the dot under 大.

Tree vs. root: the baseline marks the origin.

Pull out vs. dial: the hand radical is shared; the right side differs by one stroke.

Clear (weather) vs. eyeball: sun vs. eye radical.

Drink vs. thirsty: mouth radical vs. water.

Blue vs. basket: grass head vs. bamboo head.

Buy vs. sell: the seller adds a mark on top (買/賣).

Ask vs. hear/smell: mouth vs. ear inside the gate (問/聞).

Resemble vs. elephant: the person radical marks the abstract sense.

Wine vs. sprinkle: water radical plus a near-identical right side.

辩 vs 辨 vs 辫

Argue / distinguish / braid: speech, knife, silk between 辛 (辯辨辮).

的 vs 得 vs 地

de ×3: possessive, complement, adverbial; same sound, different grammar.

zài at/in vs. zài again: existence vs. repetition.

zuò do/make vs. zuò work/act: concrete vs. abstract "do".

zuò to sit vs. zuò seat/measure: verb vs. noun.

huì learned skill vs. néng capability: both "can".

还是 vs 或者

háishi "or" in questions, huòzhě "or" in statements.

了解 vs 理解

To know of vs. to comprehend: 了解 is acquaintance, 理解 is grasp.

Two ways to say "two": counting vs. measuring.

Wear (through the body) vs. wear (on the surface).

注意 vs 主意

zhùyì pay attention vs. zhǔyi an idea: tone flip, different word.

知道 vs 认识

Know a fact vs. know a person: 知道 facts, 认识 acquaintances.

感觉 vs 觉得

Feel/sensation (noun-ish) vs. feel/think (opinion).