NetChai Chinese
干得好
gān dé hǎo
Good job · trad. 幹得好

干得好 (gàn de hǎo) is a common and versatile way to praise someone's effort or achievement in Mandarin Chinese. It literally means "did well" and is suitable for most situations, from complimenting a friend to encouraging a child.

When to use it

Neutral. It can be used for friends, colleagues, or even children. For stronger praise, use 真棒 (zhēn bàng, "really great") or 太棒了 (tài bàng le, "that's awesome!"). For a more formal context or to acknowledge performance, 表现得很好 (biǎoxiàn de hěn hǎo, "performed very well") can be used. When someone praises you, a simple 谢谢 (xièxie, "thank you") is appropriate.

How to pronounce it

Sounds roughly like "GAN-duh-HOW." The first syllable "干" is a falling tone, "得" is a light, neutral tone (like "duh"), and "好" is a third tone.

Other ways to say it

  • 真棒zhēn bàngreally great / awesome
  • 太棒了tài bàng lethat's awesome! (more emphatic)
  • 做得好zuò dé hǎodone well (often interchangeable)

Examples

你干得好!
nǐ gān dé hǎo !
You did a good job!
这次你干得真棒。
zhè cì nǐ gān dé zhēn bàng 。
You did a really great job this time.
干得好,继续努力!
gān dé hǎo , jì xù nǔ lì !
Good job, keep up the good work!
Pro tip: Both 干得好 (gàn de hǎo) and 做得好 (zuò de hǎo) mean "good job" or "done well" and are often interchangeable. The particle 得 (de) is crucial here, connecting the verb (干 or 做) to the descriptive complement (好).

Related phrases

和平 · Peace钱 · Money闭嘴 · Shut up
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