HSK 6 · VERSION 2.0#57

Expressing “Finally” with “zhōngyú”

终于

zhōngyú

How it works

终于 (zhōngyú) means “finally,” “at last,” or “in the end.” It emphasizes that something happened after waiting, effort, or a long process.

Compared with 终究 (zhōngjiū), 终于 (zhōngyú) focuses more on the actual point of completion or arrival of the result.

经过长时间的反复修改，这篇论文终于在最后期限之前完成了。

Jīngguò cháng shíjiān de fǎnfù xiūgǎi, zhè piān lùnwén zhōngyú zài zuìhòu qīxiàn zhīqián wánchéng le.

After a long period of repeated revision, this paper was finally completed before the deadline.

他沉默了很久，终于还是把自己真正的想法说了出来。

Tā chénmò le hěn jiǔ, zhōngyú háishi bǎ zìjǐ zhēnzhèng de xiǎngfǎ shuō le chūlái.

He remained silent for a long time, and finally he still expressed what he truly thought.

大家努力了这么久，看到事情终于开始朝好的方向发展，心里都轻松了不少。

Dàjiā nǔlì le zhème jiǔ, kàndào shìqing zhōngyú kāishǐ cháo hǎo de fāngxiàng fāzhǎn, xīnli dōu qīngsōng le bù shǎo.

After everyone had worked so hard for so long, seeing things finally begin to develop in a good direction made them all feel much more relieved.

终于 (zhōngyú) often highlights the arrival of a long-awaited result.