How to Say ‘Even thought; thought that’ in Traditional Chinese
還以為
hái yǐ wèi
[high ee-way]
💬 Usage Tip: [還以為] means “thought that... but actually not,” often after a mistaken impression. Perfect for near-goal moments: [我還以為要進了].
🇹🇼 In Taiwan: This phrase is great for sports because fans constantly misread fast plays and then laugh about it one second later.
Phrase Breakdown
還
hái
[high]
still; unexpectedly in this phrase
In this pattern, 還 often adds emphasis before 以為, helping express 'actually thought' or 'was under the impression.'
我剛剛看到重播時，還以為那球真的進了。
When I saw the replay just now, I really thought that ball had gone in.
以為
yǐ wèi
[ee-way]
to think mistakenly; to assume
以為 means to believe something that may turn out to be wrong, like 'thought' or 'assumed.'
大家都以為比賽快結束了，結果還有補時。
Everyone thought the match was almost over, but there was still stoppage time.
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