终于
zhōngyú
The 'finally' where a held breath goes out
The picture Climbing a long while, then stepping onto the last rung and letting out a long held breath. 终于 has arrived after a long haul; 马上 has not arrived yet but is close.
Where the picture shows up in 终于
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the breath at the end of a wait
等了一个小时，他终于来了。
děng le yí ge xiǎo shí, tā zhōng yú lái le
I waited an hour and he finally came.
Rising from beside a cup of tea gone cold, both arms opening toward the door
Naming the wait beforehand sharpens the picture.
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the breath at the end of a search
找了半天，我终于找到了钥匙。
zhǎo le bàn tiān, wǒ zhōng yú zhǎo dào le yào shi
I searched for ages and finally found the keys.
A keyring lifted out of the contents of an upended bag
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the breath at the end of a day
太好了，终于下班了。
tài hǎo le, zhōng yú xià bān le
Great — finally off work.
A monitor switched off and a body tipping back against the chair with a long exhale
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the breath after a third repair
修了三次，空调终于好了。
xiū le sān cì, kōng tiáo zhōng yú hǎo le
After three repairs the air conditioner finally works.
Looking up at a ribbon tied to a vent, fluttering at last
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the breath after two years of study
学了两年，我终于会说中文了。
xué le liǎng nián, wǒ zhōng yú huì shuō zhōng wén le
After two years of study I can finally speak Chinese.
Ordering at a shop without stumbling for the first time and taking the change
With 会…了 it means something you could not do has become possible.
All of it in one picture
终于 is the breath that comes out on the last step. Let it out at the end of a wait and the person has appeared; let it out at the end of a search and the keys are in your hand. At the end of a day it becomes clocking off; at the end of a third repair it becomes an air conditioner brought back to life; at the end of two years it becomes a mouth that finally speaks. A stretch of waiting or a count of tries always comes first, and 了 comes at the end.