温习

• Pinyin: wēn xí
• Hanzi breakdown: 温 = 氵+ 昷 (warm, to warm up — reviewing as warming up knowledge); 习 = 羽 simplified + 白 (to practice repeatedly)

Meaning

To review; to revise; to go over previously learned material. Refers to the act of revisiting and consolidating knowledge already studied.

A core academic habit in Chinese education culture. The Confucian saying 温故知新 (reviewing the old to understand the new) reflects this value. Common before exams and when returning to a subject after a long absence.

Examples

1. 考试前，她每天抽出两个小时温习所有课程内容。 Before the exam, she set aside two hours each day to review all the course material.
2. 老师建议学生每天温习当天所学，以防知识遗忘。 The teacher recommends that students review what they learned that day to prevent forgetting it.
3. 工作多年后重新温习专业知识，感觉既陌生又亲切。 After years of work, reviewing professional knowledge again felt both unfamiliar and strangely familiar.

Usage Guide

Context: education, study

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 每次课后及时温习笔记，有助于深化理解并形成长期记忆。(Reviewing notes promptly after each class helps deepen understanding and build long-term memory.)
• 临近期末，他把整个学期的内容从头到尾温习了一遍。(As the semester-end approached, he reviewed the entire semester's content from beginning to end.)

Don't Say

• 我要温习一下这个新技能 — for practicing a new skill, use 练习 or 学习; 温习 specifically means reviewing material already learned, not acquiring something new

Origin & History

温 (to warm up, to review) + 习 (to practice, to study)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal