Hanzi Stroke Logo
Hanzi Stroke

Making Chinese characters easy to write.

Sister Sites
Five Elements Test
About•Privacy Policy•Terms of Service
DICTIONARY
  • Chinese Dictionary
  • Pinyin Index
  • Radical Index
  • Character Components
  • HSK Dictionary
  • Character Compare
DICTIONARY
  • Chinese Dictionary
  • Pinyin Index
  • Radical Index
  • Character Components
  • HSK Dictionary
  • Character Compare
TOOLS
  • Worksheet Generator
  • Worksheet Library
  • Pinyin Converter
  • Chinese Name Generator
  • Zodiac Calculator
  • HSK Level Checker
  • Flashcards
  • Dictation Practice
TOOLS
  • Worksheet Generator
  • Worksheet Library
  • Pinyin Converter
  • Chinese Name Generator
  • Zodiac Calculator
  • HSK Level Checker
  • Flashcards
  • Dictation Practice
LEARN
  • Learning Center
  • Blog
  • Chinese Stroke Rules
  • Chinese Idioms
  • Chinese Poetry
  • Pro Membership ✨
LEARN
  • Learning Center
  • Blog
  • Chinese Stroke Rules
  • Chinese Idioms
  • Chinese Poetry
  • Pro Membership ✨

© 2026 Hanzi Stroke. All rights reserved.

Made with♥for Chinese learners.
HanziStroke Logo
Hanzi Stroke
By CharacterBrowse all characters A-Z
By PinyinSearch by pronunciation
By RadicalFind by radical component
By ComponentsLearn meaning and sound clues
HSK ListsAll HSK versions overview
HSK 2.0 — Current Exam
Learn & Practice
Worksheet GeneratorCreate practice sheets for free
Learning Essentials
  1. Home
  2. HSK 3.0 Level 7-9
  3. 似是而非

似是而非 (sì shì ér fēi): Appear to be true but is actually false / specious — Meaning & Stroke Order

HSK 3.0Level 7-9
1.

Animated Stroke Order

Stroke order SVGs for the characters in 似是而非.

Stroke order animation for 似是而非
806 learners have practiced this word

Practice writing 似是而非 (sì shì ér fēi) with a free printable worksheet

Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Level 4
Level 5
Level 6
HSK 3.0 — New Syllabus
Level 1Level 2Level 3Level 4Level 5Level 6Level 7-9
Worksheet LibraryHSK, Top 100 & themed PDFs
HSK Level CheckerCheck HSK level of any text
Pinyin ConverterConvert Chinese to Pinyin
Dictation PracticeListen and write HSK characters
HSK FlashcardsSRS review for HSK vocabulary
My Learning
Learning DashboardTrack your writing progress
My VocabularyReview saved words and lists
Fun & Culture
Name GeneratorCreate your Chinese name
View All Tools
8 Basic Strokes GuideHot
Foundation of all characters
Pinyin Tones Guide
4 tones with audio examples
Chinese Handwriting Guide
Daily practice routine
HSK 3.0 Complete GuideNew
New exam format explained
HSK 1 Common Mistakes
Avoid beginner errors
Topics & Culture
Chinese Numbers 1-1000
Count like a native
Time & Dates Guide
Tell time in Chinese
Family Members Guide
30+ family terms
2026 Fire Horse YearHot
Zodiac meaning & luck
Top 100 Characters
Most frequent, free PDF
View All Blog Posts
Download Worksheet
Download
2.

Character Breakdown

似是而非 consists of 4 characters.

似
sì
to resemble; to be like
是
shì
to be
而
ér
and; while
非
fēi
un-; non-; short for Africa

Word Info

Pinyinsì shì ér fēi
Meaningappear to be true but is actually false / specious
Characters4
HSK 2.0—
HSK 3.0Level 7-9
Syntax—
Word似是而非
Zodiac CalculatorFind your zodiac animal

Related Words

More HSK vocabulary that shares characters with 似是而非.

Words with 似
  • 似乎sì hūHSK 5
  • 似的shì deHSK 5
  • 相似xiāng sìHSK 5
  • 看似kàn sìHSK 6
  • 类似lèi sìHSK 6
  • 好似hǎo sìHSK 7-9
  • 酷似kù sìHSK 7-9
  • 似曾相识sì céng xiāng shíHSK 7-9
Words with 是
  • 但是dàn shìHSK 2
  • 只是zhǐ shìHSK 3
  • 总是zǒng shìHSK 3
  • 还是hái shìHSK 3
  • 于是yú shìHSK 4
  • 可是kě shìHSK 4
  • 就是jiù shìHSK 4
  • 是否
Words with 而
  • 而且ér qiěHSK 3
  • 然而rán érHSK 4
  • 从而cóng érHSK 5
  • 反而fǎn érHSK 5
  • 因而yīn érHSK 5
  • 时而shí érHSK 6
  • 而已ér yǐHSK 6
  • 进而
Words with 非
  • 非常fēi chángHSK 2
  • 除非chú fēiHSK 5
  • 非洲Fēi zhōuHSK 5
  • 并非bìng fēiHSK 6
  • 无非wú fēiHSK 6
  • 是非shì fēiHSK 6
  • 非法fēi fǎHSK 6
  • 莫非
shì fǒu
HSK 4
jìn ér
HSK 6
mò fēi
HSK 7-9
3.

How to Use 似是而非 in Sentences

Common collocations & usage patterns. Learn how to combine 似是而非 with other words naturally.

Verb + Complement
tīng听
qǐ起
lái来
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
neutralSpoken
sound plausible but false
xiǎn显
de得
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
Measure Word + Nounwith观点
yī一
zhǒng种
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
de的
Adjective + Nounwith说法
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
de的
shuō说
fǎ法
4.

Example Sentences with 似是而非

tā他
shuō说
de的
huà话
sì似
shì是
ér而
formal
Written
appear plausible but false
guān
观
diǎn点
formal
a specious viewpoint
formal
specious argument
fēi
非
,
wǒ我
yǒu有
diǎn点
bù不
míng明
bái白
。
What he said seems plausible but is actually fallacious; I'm a bit confused.
tā他
de的
lùn论
diǎn点
kàn看
sì似
yán严
jǐn谨
,
shí实
zé则
chōng充
mǎn满
le了
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
de的
luó逻
jí辑
xiàn陷
jǐng阱
。
His argument appears rigorous, but is actually filled with specious logical traps.
nǐ你
gāng刚
cái才
de的
jiě解
shì释
shì是
bu不
shì是
yǒu有
diǎn点
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
?
qǐng请
zài再
chéng澄
qīng清
yí一
xià下
。
Wasn't your explanation just now a bit specious? Please clarify it again.
zhè这
ge个
guǎng广
gào告
xuān宣
chuán传
dé得
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
,
ràng让
rén人
wù误
yǐ以
wéi为
chǎn产
pǐn品
xiào效
guǒ果
hěn很
hǎo好
。
This advertisement is misleading, making people mistakenly believe the product is highly effective.
zhè这
zhǒng种
yíng营
xiāo销
huà话
shù术
bìng并
fēi非
gāo高
míng明
,
zhǐ只
shì是
xiē些
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
de的
wù误
dǎo导
bà罢
le了
。
This marketing rhetoric is not sophisticated; it's merely some specious misleading talk.
bié别
bèi被
nà那
xiē些
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
de的
yáo谣
yán言
yǐng影
xiǎng响
,
wǒ我
men们
xū需
yào要
hé核
shí实
xìn信
xī息
。
Don't be influenced by those specious rumors; we need to verify the information.
tā他
de的
jiě解
shì释
tīng听
qǐ起
lái来
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
,
zǐ仔
xì细
yī一
xiǎng想
què却
fā发
xiàn现
lòu漏
dòng洞
bǎi百
chū出
。
His explanation sounds plausible on the surface, but upon closer examination, it's full of flaws.
jǐn尽
guǎn管
tā他
de的
lǐ理
lùn论
tīng听
qǐ起
lái来
sì似
shì是
ér而
fēi非
,
què却
yì意
wài外
dì地
xī吸
yǐn引
le了
bù不
shǎo少
zhuī追
suí随
zhě者
。
Although his theory sounds specious, it has unexpectedly attracted many followers.