Looking up...
看起来
kàn qǐ lái
it seems
看起来要下雨了。
It seems like it's going to rain.
neutral
To give the impression of being; to appear to be.
他看起来很累。
He looks tired.
这个菜看起来很好吃。
This dish looks delicious.
Used to express a subjective impression based on visual or other sensory cues. Often followed by adjectives or adjectival phrases.
Related Phrases
Pro Tip
Common Mistake
Don't confuse '看起来' with '看上去' (which has a similar meaning but is slightly more formal). Both are interchangeable in most contexts.
Gold Rule
Subjective Impression
Use '看起来' to express your personal impression based on what you see, hear, or feel, not to state facts.
Word Origin
Composed of '看' (to look) and '起来' (to rise/begin), indicating the initiation of an action or state based on observation. The phrase evolved from classical Chinese to modern usage as a way to express perceived qualities.
Usage Notes
1. '看起来' is used to express an impression based on appearance or other sensory input, not necessarily factual certainty. 2. It often appears at the beginning of a sentence or clause. 3. In spoken Chinese, it can be shortened to '看来' in informal contexts.
Word Breakdown
看
to look
verb起来
to begin/indicating upward movement or starting a state
verb complement汉英词典