Word
她 本来 想 参加 下午 的 会议， 可是 身体 不舒服， 只好 回 宿舍 睡觉。tā běnlái xiǎng cānjiā xiàwǔ de huìyì, kěshì shēntǐ bùshūfu, zhǐhǎo huí sùshè shuìjiào.
Meaning
She had originally wanted to attend the afternoon meeting, but she felt unwell, so she had no choice but to go back to the dorm to sleep.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of tā běnlái xiǎng cānjiā xiàwǔ de huìyì, kěshì shēntǐ bùshūfu, zhǐhǎo huí sùshè shuìjiào.
她tā
she
回huí
to return
想xiǎng
to want to
下午xiàwǔ
Questions & Answers about tā běnlái xiǎng cānjiā xiàwǔ de huìyì, kěshì shēntǐ bùshūfu, zhǐhǎo huí sùshè shuìjiào.
What does 本来 mean in this sentence?
本来 here means originally, at first, or had been intending to.
It sets up an expectation that later gets reversed:
- 她本来想参加下午的会议
= She had originally wanted/planned to attend the afternoon meeting
A very common pattern is:
- 本来……，可是/但是……
- Originally..., but...
Also, 本来 is not the same as 原来 in many contexts.
- 本来 = originally, by original plan/nature
- 原来 = it turns out, so that’s how it is
Why is 想 used here? Does it mean want, would like to, or planned to?