几乎 · 似乎
几乎: almost, nearly · 似乎: seem to (written)
Structure
几乎 + 都／没 + 动词 · 主语 + 似乎 + 动词／形容词
What it means
几乎 means “almost, nearly”, and 几乎没／不 means “hardly”. 似乎 means “seem to” and sounds written.
How it is built
几乎 + what it limits: 他几乎每天都去健身 (He works out almost every day); 我几乎没吃过肥肉 (I’ve hardly ever eaten fatty meat). Subject + 似乎 + verb / adjective: 她似乎不太高兴.
When to use it
With 每天 or 所有, add 都: 几乎所有人都…. In speech people usually say 好像 rather than 似乎.
Watch out
Neither goes at the end of the sentence: ✗ 她不太高兴似乎 ✓ 她似乎不太高兴. They look alike but differ: 几乎 is “almost”, 似乎 is “seem”.
Examples
他几乎每天都去健身。
He works out almost every day.
我几乎没吃过肥肉。
I’ve hardly ever eaten fatty meat.
她今天似乎不太高兴。
She seems a bit unhappy today.
很多人似乎觉得体检没有用。
Many people seem to think check-ups are pointless.
Learn this in HSK 4 · Lesson 5: 体检 (The health check)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
Open the lesson →