<p>In Classical Chinese, 见 describes the action that you get visual information. It implies the result, but has no duration. 见 is more like <em>to see</em>, 看 is more like <em>to look (at)</em>.</p>

<p>In modern Chinese, you probably will not use 见 as a verb. Instead, you say 看见, which consists of a verb 看 and a particle 见. In Classical Chinese, we say 不见, but in modern Chinese, we say 看不见 (cannot see) or 没看见 (did not see) depending on the context. 见 serves as the <a href="http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Result_complement">result complement</a> of 看 here.</p>

<p>The 看 in 看书 and 看电影 does not mean <em>to perceive with the eyes</em>. You'd better take them as collocations.</p>

<p>见 can be used as a verb when it means <em>to see/meet someone</em>, or <em>to see something unusual and widen one's knowledge</em>. For example, 见客人, 见世面, etc.</p>

<p>见面 (to meet) literally means <em>to see someone's face</em>. 见识 literally means <em>to see and then to know something</em>. But I think dictionaries will simply list them as compound verbs, because you cannot guess their idiomatic meanings from their literal meanings.</p>

<p>In short, 看 and 见 either have different grammatical functions (verb vs particle), or have totally different meanings.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-30T20:56:16.873Z
Upvote for specifically addressing use of 看见 together, the 看不见　complement, and 看见　vs 看见　. I prefer to re-order your paragraphs though :) I prefer to start with your summary, "In short, ...". I also prefer to see "见　can be used..." , but clarifying how "you probably will not use　见..."
Nate Anderson
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-06-28T14:34:27.130Z
2014-06-28T14:34:27.130Z
Yang Muye
<p>They don't both mean "to see" exactly. Actually, both have multiple meanings, some but not all of which overlaps.</p>

<p>Possible meanings of 看:</p>

<ul>
<li>To observe</li>
<li>To view (in appreciation)</li>
<li>To visit</li>
<li>To (visually) estimate</li>
<li>To be treated by a doctor</li>
<li>As a particle, it conveys the sense of "give it a try"</li>
</ul>

<p>Possible meanings of 見:</p>

<ul>
<li>To have seen</li>
<li>To visit</li>
<li>To meet (in the sense of to receive a guest)</li>
<li>To meet (in the sense of bumping into someone on the road)</li>
<li>As a noun, views, opinions, understanding</li>
</ul>

<p>As you might have noticed, the usages of 看 tend to involve being <strong>focused on the act of looking</strong>. In contrast, 見 tends to be used in situations where <strong>looking is not the focus</strong> of the activity. The <strong>difference in focus</strong> would be a clue, though not an absolute rule, for you to decide which one to use in a given phrase.</p>

<p>Turning to your specific examples: in 看书 or 看电影, the character 看 takes the meaning of "to view, to observe, to admire" in the same sense as <em>enjoying the view</em> when sightseeing. 見 does not have an equivalent meaning for this usage. Thus, you might say 看風景 (sightseeing), but never 見風景; you could say 看得見風景 (the view is visible) however.</p>

<p>With the case of 見面, the character 見 is "to see" in the sense of <em>to meet</em>. Again, 看 does not have a completely equivalent meaning. On the other hand, 看 can be used to mean <em>to visit</em>. Therefore, you could say 見客 (receive a guest) but not 看客; whereas both 去看朋友 and 去見朋友 (to see a friend) are possible (but 去找朋友 might be more popular than either).</p>

<p>For the last one, 見識 uses 見 as a noun in the sense of "a view, an opinion, a understanding". Again, no equivalent in 看.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-06-28T14:47:24.697Z
2015-06-17T16:40:51.023Z
2015-06-17T16:40:51.023Z
Semaphore
<p>The difference between these two characters is similar to that of &quot;listen&quot; and &quot;hear&quot; in English.</p>
<ul>
<li><p>看 emphasizes the action of looking (analogous to &quot;listen&quot;),</p>
</li>
<li><p>while 见 prefers the result of see (analogous to &quot;hear&quot;).</p>
</li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-06-18T05:34:29.330Z
＂汉语动词３８０例＂，见／看，一、见１。刚才我见他去图书馆了。动词＂见＂是看到和看见的意思。如～世面，～朋友，～客人等。２。那种花儿要经常见阳光。＂见＂有接触和遇到的意思。多用于光、电、风、雨、水、温度等自然现象。３。这个孩子的个儿又见高了。＂见＂在这儿是显现出的意思。如～瘦、～胖、～好、～成效等。４。我们在北京只见了两个小时。＂见＂在这儿是跟谁会面或会见某人的意思。如～客人、～朋友、～领导等。二、看１。他每天晚上看书看得很晚。动词＂看＂是视线注视一定的对象或方向。如～电视、～画儿、～球赛、～报纸等。２。不但要看他的言论，还要看他的行动。＂看＂在这儿是对人或事物进行观察。如～某人、～情况、～运气、～机会等。３。明天我要去看一位老同学。＂看＂在这儿是探望和访问的意思。如～父母、～朋友、～病人、～亲戚等。＂看＂表示这种意思的时候，跟＂见＂相似，但是有区别，用＂看＂着意在探望，而＂见＂着意在会面，是不能互换的。４。我看他不会来了。＂看＂在这儿指经过分析思考，作出某种判断，有认为的意思。后边一般都是小句，如＂我～病得不轻。＂＂你～他们之间的关系怎么样？＂等.＂见＂不表示这样的意思。５。那位大夫每天都要看很多病人。＂看＂还有诊治的意思。如～眼睛、～牙、～中医、～西医等。＂见＂不表示这样的意思。＂看＂还有照看的意思。如～＂奶奶在家～孩子.＂等。
user6065
CC BY-SA 4.0
2014-06-28T18:14:33.113Z
2021-01-12T07:31:52.777Z
2021-01-12T07:31:52.777Z
Sophia Yan
<p>I know 看 and 见 both mean "to see". But they are used differently in different words. Like 看书 看电影...etc. and 见面 见识...etc. (Or do Chinese people say 见书 见电影 or 看面 看识?)</p>

<p>Is there a rules to use them differently?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-06-20T14:48:29.223Z
Similar confusing when the first time I started to learn English and came across the two words "look" and "see", maybe also "watch".              Actually, "看" stands for "look/watch/stare/glance", while "见" stands for "see"
shuangwhywhy
<difference>
When to use 看 and 见？
# When to use 看 and 见？

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-06-28)

I know 看 and 见 both mean "to see". But they are used differently in different words. Like 看书 看电影...etc. and 见面 见识...etc. (Or do Chinese people say 见书 见电影 or 看面 看识?)

Is there a rules to use them differently?

**Tags:** difference

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Similar confusing when the first time I started to learn English and came across the two words "look" and "see", maybe also "watch".              Actually, "看" stands for "look/watch/stare/glance", while "见" stands for "see"  

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## 3 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2014-06-28. Score: 11

In Classical Chinese, 见 describes the action that you get visual information. It implies the result, but has no duration. 见 is more like *to see*, 看 is more like *to look (at)*.

In modern Chinese, you probably will not use 见 as a verb. Instead, you say 看见, which consists of a verb 看 and a particle 见. In Classical Chinese, we say 不见, but in modern Chinese, we say 看不见 (cannot see) or 没看见 (did not see) depending on the context. 见 serves as the [result complement](http://resources.allsetlearning.com/chinese/grammar/Result_complement) of 看 here.

The 看 in 看书 and 看电影 does not mean *to perceive with the eyes*. You'd better take them as collocations.

见 can be used as a verb when it means *to see/meet someone*, or *to see something unusual and widen one's knowledge*. For example, 见客人, 见世面, etc.

见面 (to meet) literally means *to see someone's face*. 见识 literally means *to see and then to know something*. But I think dictionaries will simply list them as compound verbs, because you cannot guess their idiomatic meanings from their literal meanings.

In short, 看 and 见 either have different grammatical functions (verb vs particle), or have totally different meanings.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: Upvote for specifically addressing use of 看见 together, the 看不见　complement, and 看见　vs 看见　. I prefer to re-order your paragraphs though :) I prefer to start with your summary, "In short, ...". I also prefer to see "见　can be used..." , but clarifying how "you probably will not use　见..."  

---

### Answer by username_4 on 2014-06-28. Score: 9

They don't both mean "to see" exactly. Actually, both have multiple meanings, some but not all of which overlaps.

Possible meanings of 看:

* To observe
* To view (in appreciation)
* To visit
* To (visually) estimate
* To be treated by a doctor
* As a particle, it conveys the sense of "give it a try"

Possible meanings of 見:

* To have seen
* To visit
* To meet (in the sense of to receive a guest)
* To meet (in the sense of bumping into someone on the road)
* As a noun, views, opinions, understanding

As you might have noticed, the usages of 看 tend to involve being **focused on the act of looking**. In contrast, 見 tends to be used in situations where **looking is not the focus** of the activity. The **difference in focus** would be a clue, though not an absolute rule, for you to decide which one to use in a given phrase.

Turning to your specific examples: in 看书 or 看电影, the character 看 takes the meaning of "to view, to observe, to admire" in the same sense as *enjoying the view* when sightseeing. 見 does not have an equivalent meaning for this usage. Thus, you might say 看風景 (sightseeing), but never 見風景; you could say 看得見風景 (the view is visible) however.

With the case of 見面, the character 見 is "to see" in the sense of *to meet*. Again, 看 does not have a completely equivalent meaning. On the other hand, 看 can be used to mean *to visit*. Therefore, you could say 見客 (receive a guest) but not 看客; whereas both 去看朋友 and 去見朋友 (to see a friend) are possible (but 去找朋友 might be more popular than either).

For the last one, 見識 uses 見 as a noun in the sense of "a view, an opinion, a understanding". Again, no equivalent in 看.


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### Answer by username_5 on 2014-06-28. Score: 2

The difference between these two characters is similar to that of "listen" and "hear" in English.

* 看 emphasizes the action of looking (analogous to "listen"),
* while 见 prefers the result of see (analogous to "hear").

> **Comments:**
> **username_6**: ＂汉语动词３８０例＂，见／看，一、见１。刚才我见他去图书馆了。动词＂见＂是看到和看见的意思。如～世面，～朋友，～客人等。２。那种花儿要经常见阳光。＂见＂有接触和遇到的意思。多用于光、电、风、雨、水、温度等自然现象。３。这个孩子的个儿又见高了。＂见＂在这儿是显现出的意思。如～瘦、～胖、～好、～成效等。４。我们在北京只见了两个小时。＂见＂在这儿是跟谁会面或会见某人的意思。如～客人、～朋友、～领导等。二、看１。他每天晚上看书看得很晚。动词＂看＂是视线注视一定的对象或方向。如～电视、～画儿、～球赛、～报纸等。２。不但要看他的言论，还要看他的行动。＂看＂在这儿是对人或事物进行观察。如～某人、～情况、～运气、～机会等。３。明天我要去看一位老同学。＂看＂在这儿是探望和访问的意思。如～父母、～朋友、～病人、～亲戚等。＂看＂表示这种意思的时候，跟＂见＂相似，但是有区别，用＂看＂着意在探望，而＂见＂着意在会面，是不能互换的。４。我看他不会来了。＂看＂在这儿指经过分析思考，作出某种判断，有认为的意思。后边一般都是小句，如＂我～病得不轻。＂＂你～他们之间的关系怎么样？＂等.＂见＂不表示这样的意思。５。那位大夫每天都要看很多病人。＂看＂还有诊治的意思。如～眼睛、～牙、～中医、～西医等。＂见＂不表示这样的意思。＂看＂还有照看的意思。如～＂奶奶在家～孩子.＂等。  

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