ChinesePath再 (zài): "Again" — but Only for Things That Haven't Happened Yet
再 zài means "again" — with a built-in time restriction that English "again" lacks: 再 only points forward, to repetition that has not happened yet. "Say it again" (the saying is still ahead) is 再说一遍 zài shuō yī biàn; "he came again" (the coming already happened) must switch to 又: 他又来了. Get this one rule down and the notorious 再/又 confusion is solved. Around the core meaning, 再 has three more everyday jobs: sequencing ("do A, then B"), intensifying ("even more"), and the emphatic "never again".
Use 1: future repetition or continuation
- 请再说一遍。Qǐng zài shuō yī biàn. (Please say it again.)
- 希望我们能再见面。Xīwàng wǒmen néng zài jiànmiàn. (I hope we meet again.) — the 再 in 再见 "goodbye" is exactly this word
- 明天再说吧。Míngtiān zài shuō ba. (Let's talk about it tomorrow.)
Use 2: "…first, then…" — sequencing
再 schedules the next step after a condition or prior action is done:
- 吃完饭再走。Chī wán fàn zài zǒu. (Finish eating before you go.)
- 想清楚了再决定。Xiǎng qīngchu le zài juédìng. (Think it through, then decide.)
- 你先休息休息再继续。Nǐ xiān xiūxi xiūxi zài jìxù. (Rest first, then carry on.)
The frame 先 A 再 B ("first A, then B") is the standard way to order two future actions.
Use 3: "even more" — pushing the degree
Before an adjective, 再 raises the degree hypothetically:
- 风再大一点就好了。Fēng zài dà yīdiǎn jiù hǎo le. (A bit more wind and it'd be perfect.)
- 你再努力一点就能成功。Nǐ zài nǔlì yīdiǎn jiù néng chénggōng. (Push a little harder and you'll make it.)
This is also the 再 of the concessive frame 再 + adjective + 也: 再难也要坚持 (however hard it gets, keep going) — "take the difficulty as high as you like; the conclusion stands."
Use 4: 再也不 — "never again"
In negatives, 再 marks the end of all future repetition:
- 我再也不去了。Wǒ zài yě bù qù le. (I'm never going again.)
- 他再不提这件事。Tā zài bù tí zhè jiàn shì. (He never brings it up anymore.)
再也不 + verb + 了 is the strongest everyday formula for swearing something off.
The 再/又/也 triangle
| Word | Question it answers | Time direction | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 再 | will it repeat? | future | 我明天再来。(I'll come again tomorrow.) |
| 又 | did it repeat? | already happened | 我又来了。(Here I am again.) |
| 也 | does the same hold elsewhere? | no time direction | 你去，我也去。(You go, I go too.) |
又 and 再 split "again" by whether the repetition is on the record yet; 也 is not about repetition at all, but sameness across cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between 再 and 又?
Time direction. 再 marks repetition still to come (明天再来 — come again tomorrow); 又 marks repetition that already occurred (他昨天来过，今天又来了 — he came again today). "Again" splits into two words in Chinese, and they are not interchangeable.
What does 明天再说 mean?
Literally "talk about it again tomorrow" — idiomatically, "let's deal with it later / put it off". The 再 schedules the discussing for after now.
How do I say "never again" in Chinese?
再也不 + verb + 了: 我再也不去了 (I'm never going there again), 我再也不相信他了 (I'll never trust him again). The 也 tightens the "not once more" reading.
What does 先…再… mean?
"First…, then…": 先吃饭再走 (eat first, then go). 再 places the second action after the completion of the first — a sequencing device, not a repetition.
Why is 再见 "goodbye"?
再见 is literally "again + see" — "(may we) see each other again". It is the future-pointing 再 in its most-used sentence.
Try the first unit free