Various ways to say “I think” in Chinese

Let’s explore the common expressions and their uses in sentences for ‘I think’ in Chinese.

我想……

想 is used to express a person’s will or plan, and means “to want” as seen in the sentence “ 我想睡觉。”（I want to sleep.）

Here we’re going to focus on another usage for 想, using it to express a thought or assumption.

The basic structure:

Somebody + 想 + other elements.

e.g.

我想他说的是对的。(Wǒ xiǎnɡ tā shuōde shì duì de.) I think what he said is right.

我想他们会来。(Wǒ xiǎnɡ tāmen huì lái.) I think they will come.

我想今天不会下雨。 (Wǒ xiǎng jīntiān bú huì xiàyǔ.) I think it won’t rain today.

我想明天再去看一次电影。(Wǒ xiǎng míngtiān zài qù kàn yícì diànyǐng.) I think I’ll go watch the movie again tomorrow. / I want to go watch the movie again tomorrow.

Pay attention that if you want to say “I don’t think…”, you cannot say “我不想……”. Since “我不想……” means “I don’t want”. Instead, you need to negate the content of what you think, rather than 想 itself.

e.g.

我想他说的是不对的。(Wǒ xiǎnɡ tā shuōde shì bú duì de.) I don’t think what he said is right.

我想他们不会来了。(Wǒ xiǎnɡ tāmen bú huì lái le.) I don’t think they will come.

我觉得……

觉得 literally means “to feel” or “to think” and emphasizes personal feelings or subjective impressions. It’s similar to 想 when expressing “I think,” but 觉得 usually carries a more personal, emotional, or subjective tone.

The basic structure:

Somebody +觉得+other elements.

e.g.

我觉得他没错。(Wǒ juéde tā méi cuò.) I don’t think he is wrong.

我觉得明天他可能会迟到。(Wǒ juéde mínɡtiān tā kěnénɡ huì chídào.) I think he will be late tomorrow.

我觉得这家餐厅的菜非常好吃。(Wǒ juéde zhè jiā cāntīng de cài fēicháng hǎochī.) I feel (think) that the food at this restaurant is really delicious.

我觉得他今天的心情不太好。(Wǒ juéde tā jīntiān de xīnqíng bú tài hǎo.) I think (it seems to me) that he’s not in a good mood today.

我认为……

认为 means “to believe” or “to hold the view that…” It often indicates a reasoned opinion or judgment and is commonly used in more formal or serious contexts (e.g., essays, official statements).

The basic structure:

Somebody / Something + 认为 + other elements
(Here something can refer to an essay, meeting, organization, etc.)

e.g.

我认为这件事应该再讨论讨论。(Wǒ rènwéi zhè jiàn shì yīnɡɡāi zài tǎolùn tǎolun.) I think we should have another discussion on it.

文章认为保护地球，人人有责。(Wénzhānɡ rènwéi bǎohù dìqiú, rénrén yǒu zé.) The essay reads that protecting the earth is the responsibility of everyone.

专家们认为这个问题需要全球合作。(Zhuānjiā men rènwéi zhège wèntí xūyào quánqiú hézuò.) Experts believe that this problem requires global cooperation.

很多人认为保持健康的关键是合理饮食和运动。(Hěn duō rén rènwéi bǎochí jiànkāng de guānjiàn shì hélǐ yǐnshí hé yùndòng.) Many people believe that the key to staying healthy is a proper diet and exercise.

我以为……

以为 is used when your subjective assumption/judgment turns out to be contrary to reality. It often translates to “I thought…” in English, but the actual situation proves you were wrong or different from what you believed.

The basic structure:

Somebody + 以为 + other elements

Similar to 想, you cannot say “我不以为…” or “我没以为….” To negate the idea, you typically place the negation in the content of what was (incorrectly) believed.

e.g.

我以为他不想去。(Wǒ yǐwéi tā bù xiǎnɡ qù.) 
I thought he didn’t want to go.   ->   but actually he wants to go.

我们以为他是中国人，但实际上他是韩国人。(Wǒmen yǐwéi tā shì Zhōnɡɡuó rén，dàn shíjìshànɡ tā shì Hánɡuó rén.) We thought that he was Chinese, but in fact he was Korean.

我以为你已经出发了，没想到你还没走。 (Wǒ yǐwéi nǐ yǐjīng chūfā le, méi xiǎngdào nǐ hái méi zǒu.) I thought you had already left, but to my surprise, you’re still here.

他以为自己能准时到，可最后还是迟到了。 (Tā yǐwéi zìjǐ néng zhǔnshí dào, kě zuìhòu háishì chídào le.) He thought he could arrive on time, but in the end, he was still late.