幸好

• Pinyin: xìng hǎo
• Hanzi breakdown: 幸 = fortunate (complex structure); 好 = 女 + 子 (good/well)

Meaning

Fortunately; luckily; it is a good thing that. Expresses relief that something bad was avoided or a favourable outcome occurred.

An adverb placed before the main predicate. Slightly more informal and conversational than 幸亏. Often introduces a clause describing the fortunate circumstance.

Examples

1. 幸好他出门前检查了油箱，否则汽车早就在高速公路上抛锚了。 Luckily he checked the gas tank before heading out; otherwise the car would have broken down on the highway.
2. 暴风雨来临前幸好关上了所有窗户，家里的文件才没有被淋湿。 Fortunately we closed all the windows before the storm hit, so the documents at home didn’t get soaked.
3. 幸好有邻居及时拨打了急救电话，患者才得以转危为安。 Thankfully a neighbor called 911 in time, and the patient pulled through.

Usage Guide

Context: daily conversation, narrative, general

Tone: relieved

Do Say

• 幸好他们赶上了最后一班地铁，没有在寒风中苦等下一班。(Fortunately they caught the last subway train and didn't have to wait in the cold for the next one.)
• 幸好提前备份了所有文件，这次系统崩溃没有造成无法弥补的损失。(Fortunately all files were backed up in advance, so this system crash did not cause irreparable damage.)

Don't Say

• 幸好他失败了 — 幸好 expresses the speaker's relief; using it to comment on someone else's misfortune implies satisfaction at their failure, which is socially inappropriate in most contexts

Origin & History

幸 (fortunate/lucky) + 好 (good/well) — 'it is fortunate and good that'

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal