gāng

刚毛

Word · Adjective · AdverbTraditional剛

hard; just; only just

Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma

Meanings

3 senses · 6 examples
1.

adjective

hard; strong; firm

Describes physical hardness or strong character.

Zhè这
kuài块
shí石
tou头
hěn很
gāng刚
 。

This piece of rock is very hard.

Tā他
xìng性
gé格
gāng刚
qiáng强
 。

He has a strong personality.

2.

adverb

just; exactly; barely

Often used with time or quantity to indicate a recent or precise occurrence.

Wǒ我
gāng刚
dào到
jiā家
 。

I just got home.

Shēng声
yīn音
gāng刚
hǎo好
néng能
tīng听
jiàn见
 。

The sound is just barely audible.

3.

adverb

only then; not until

literary

Used in conditional or inverted patterns (e.g., 刚…就…).

Tā他
gāng刚
zǒu走
 ，
diàn电
huà话
jiù就
xiǎng响
le了
 。

No sooner had he left than the phone rang.

Gāng刚
guò过
wǔ五
diǎn点
 ，
tiān天
jiù就
hēi黑
le了
 。

As soon as it passed five o'clock, it got dark.