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很 + 形容词 (hěn + adjective) — Why bare adjectives sound abrupt

A Chinese adjective used as a predicate usually wants a degree word before it. 我高 sounds like an unfinished comparison; 我很高 is the neutral "I am tall." In this neutral use 很 is unstressed — it simply completes the sentence, much like "is/are" does in English.

adverbHSK 1Difficulty 30
Where it goes
Subject + 很 / 太 / 非常 + adjective: 她很漂亮, 今天很冷.
What it does
  • 01很 as a neutral linker: 我很高兴 — "I'm happy", no strong degree intended
  • 02Comparisons replace 很 with 比: 他比我高
  • 03太 … 了 means "too": 太贵了
  • 04Yes/no questions don't need it: 她漂亮吗?
Common learner errors
  • 他高。→ 他很高。 (a bare adjective as a statement sounds abrupt)
  • 他是高。→ 他很高。 — Chinese adjectives behave like verbs, so no 是 is needed (是 + adjective is a different, contrastive pattern).
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