How common it is
生动 appears often in everyday Chinese, so it is worth practicing early and reviewing often.
Pronunciation focus
Say shēng dòng slowly first, then repeat it in a short phrase. Listen for the tone shape.
Usage note
“生动”用来描述描述非常有趣、好像活起来一样的东西。
“Shēng dòng” yòng lái miáo shù miáo shù fēi cháng yǒu qù, hǎo xiàng huó qǐ lái yī yàng de dōng xī.
"Vivid" is used to describe something very interesting, as if it comes to life.
Context note
在课堂上，老师用生动的故事教我们新知识。
Zài kè táng shàng, lǎo shī yòng shēng dòng de gù shì jiào wǒ men xīn zhī shi.
In class, the teacher uses vivid stories to teach us new knowledge.
5 examples
这个故事很生动。
zhè ge gù shì hěn shēng dòng。
This story is very vivid.
他画了一幅生动的画。
tā huà le yì fú shēng dòng de huà。
He drew a vivid picture.
生动的描述让我好像看到了。
shēng dòng de miáo shù ràng wǒ hǎo xiàng kàn dào le。
The vivid description made me feel like I saw it.
她的表情很生动。
tā de biǎo qíng hěn shēng dòng。
Her expression is very vivid.
这个游戏有生动的颜色。
zhè ge yóu xì yǒu shēng dòng de yán sè。
This game has vivid colors.
5 mini stories
小明讲了一个生动的故事。大家都听得入迷了。
xiǎo míng jiǎng le yí gè shēng dòng de gù shì。 dà jiā dōu tīng dé rù mí le。
Xiao Ming told a vivid story. Everyone was fascinated.
生动的动画片让小朋友很开心。他们一直笑。
shēng dòng de dòng huà piàn ràng xiǎo péng yǒu hěn kāi xīn。 tā men yì zhí xiào。
The vivid cartoon made the children very happy. They kept laughing.
老师用生动的图片教我们认字。我们学得很快。
lǎo shī yòng shēng dòng de tú piàn jiào wǒ men rèn zì。 wǒ men xué dé hěn kuài。
The teacher used vivid pictures to teach us characters. We learned quickly.
生动的音乐让我想跳舞。我跟着节奏摇摆。
shēng dòng de yīn yuè ràng wǒ xiǎng tiào wǔ。 wǒ gēn zhe jié zòu yáo bǎi。
The vivid music made me want to dance. I swayed to the rhythm.
公园里的花很生动。蜜蜂在花间飞舞。
gōng yuán lǐ de huā hěn shēng dòng。 mì fēng zài huā jiān fēi wǔ。
The flowers in the park are very vivid. Bees are flying among the flowers.