乐观

• Pinyin: lè guān
• Hanzi breakdown: 乐 = joy, happiness (simplified from 樂); 观 = 又 (hand) + 见 (see), meaning to observe or view

Meaning

Optimistic; hopeful. Describes a positive outlook or attitude towards life and situations.

Used to describe a person's attitude or personality when they tend to see the bright side of things. Very common in both casual and formal contexts. The opposite is 悲观 (pessimistic). Can be used as an adjective (他很乐观) or to describe an attitude (乐观的态度).

Examples

1. 她是一个很乐观的人，总是笑着面对困难。 She is a very optimistic person — she always faces difficulties with a smile.
2. 医生说要保持乐观的心态。 The doctor said to maintain an optimistic mindset.
3. 虽然情况不太好，但他还是很乐观。 Although the situation isn't great, he's still very optimistic.

Usage Guide

Context: personality, attitude, encouragement

Tone: positive

Do Say

• 我们应该乐观地看待这件事。(We should look at this matter optimistically.)
• 乐观的人更容易交到朋友。(Optimistic people make friends more easily.)

Don't Say

• 他乐观了这个问题。(Don't use 乐观 as a transitive verb — it is an adjective. Say 他乐观地看待这个问题 instead.)

Origin & History

乐 means joy or happy; 观 means to look or view. Together they mean viewing things with joy — a positive outlook on life.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal