near

Compared meaning: close in distance (adjective).

比较义项：距离近的（形容词）。

• near 本词

  The general, neutral word for physical closeness; used as an adjective or preposition and can go directly before a noun (near the park) without 'to'; the most common and everyday of the three.

  这是三者中最普通、最中性的说法；可作形容词或介词，直接用在名词前（near the park），不需要加“to”；也是日常口语中最常用的一个。

  Their new apartment is near the subway station, which makes commuting easy.

  他们的新公寓离地铁站很近，这让通勤变得很方便。

• adjacent

  Implies being right next to something, often touching or sharing a border, with no gap between them; more formal, common in technical or descriptive writing; when linking to a noun it needs 'to' (adjacent to the hospital).

  强调紧靠在一起，常常是相接或共用边界，几乎没有间隔；语气比较正式，常见于技术性或描述性的文字中；接名词时要加“to”（adjacent to the hospital）。

  The pharmacy is adjacent to the hospital, sharing the same parking lot.

  这家药店紧邻医院，和医院共用同一个停车场。

• nearby

  Describes something a short distance away from a known point; usually stands alone as an adverb or sits right before the noun (a nearby bakery), rather than linking directly to another noun the way 'near' does.

  表示离某个已知地点不远；通常单独作副词使用，或直接放在名词前面（a nearby bakery），而不像“near”那样可以直接连接另一个名词。

  There's a great bakery nearby, so we never run out of fresh bread.

  附近有一家很棒的面包店，所以我们从不缺新鲜面包。

Near, adjacent, and nearby all describe closeness. Near is the most common, used directly before a noun, as in near the park. Adjacent means right next to something, more formal, as in adjacent to the hospital. Nearby usually stands alone.

这三个词都表示距离很近，但语气和用法有区别：near 最常用、最中性，可直接接名词；adjacent 强调紧靠甚至相接，语气更正式，须搭配“to”；nearby 通常单独作副词或直接放在名词前，不像 near 那样直接连接另一个名词。

Compared meaning: emotionally close in a relationship (adjective).

比较义项：（人际关系上）亲近的、亲密的（形容词）。

• close

  The general, everyday word for emotional closeness in any relationship - friends, family, colleagues. Neutral in tone, works in casual and formal contexts alike, and is the default choice when in doubt.

  这是表示人际关系亲近程度最常用的普通词，可用于朋友、家人、同事等任何关系，语气中性，正式和非正式场合皆可使用，是拿不准时的默认选择。

  My sister and I have always been close, even though we live in different countries.

  尽管我们住在不同的国家，我和姐姐（妹妹）一直很亲近。

• familiar

  Suggests closeness built up gradually through frequent contact; can also imply someone is acting too informally or presumptuously with another person, which native speakers often read as slightly negative or overstepping social boundaries.

  指通过频繁接触而逐渐建立起来的亲近关系；也可以表示某人对别人过于随意或冒昧，母语者常将其理解为略带负面、显得越界的意味。

  Some customers found the salesman a little too familiar, using nicknames right away.

  有些顾客觉得那位销售员有点过于随便亲近，一见面就直呼绰号。

• near 本词

  Formal or legal register, largely limited to kinship terms like 'near relative' or 'near relation'; rarely describes friendships and sounds old-fashioned or bureaucratic in everyday conversation compared to 'close'.

  属于正式或法律用语，主要局限于表示亲属关系的固定搭配，例如中文里的“近亲”这类说法，很少用来形容友谊，在日常口语中比“close”显得老式、官方。

  He died with no near relatives left to claim the inheritance.

  他去世时没有留下近亲可以继承遗产。

• intimate

  Marks the deepest degree of closeness, often involving private or personal matters, sometimes with romantic or sexual overtones; used for very close friends, partners, or confidential conversations and details.

  表示亲近程度最深的一种，往往涉及私密或个人的事情，有时带有浪漫或性方面的意味；用于非常亲密的朋友、伴侣，或私密的谈话与细节。

  They shared intimate details about their childhood that they'd never told anyone else.

  他们分享了从未告诉过任何人的童年隐秘细节。

Close, familiar, near, and intimate all describe closeness. Close is the general word. Familiar suggests closeness from frequent contact, but can also mean acting too informally, which sounds negative. Near is formal, limited to phrases like near relative. Intimate marks the deepest closeness, sometimes private.

这四个词在“人际关系上亲近、亲密”这一义项上意思相近，但语气和使用场合不同：close 最常用、语气中性；familiar 强调因长期接触而逐渐熟络，有时含有“为人过于随便”的负面意味；near 偏正式或法律用语，常用于表示亲属关系的固定说法；intimate 程度最深，常涉及私密话题，有时带有暧昧或亲密关系的意味。这里不比较 close 的“关闭”和“（距离上）接近”义项、familiar 的“熟悉的，眼熟的”义项、near 的“（距离上）接近的”义项，以及 intimate 的“私人的，隐私的”等其他义项。

Compared meaning: not quite, but very close to (adverb).

比较义项：几乎、差不多（副词）。

• nearly

  The plain, neutral way to say 'not quite'; common before adjectives or verbs in both everyday speech and writing, with no special emphasis.

  nearly 是表达“还差一点”最普通、最中性的说法，常用在形容词或动词前，口语和书面语中都很常见，语气上没有特别强调。

  We were nearly late for the important meeting.

  那场重要会议我们差点就迟到了。

• almost

  The most common and flexible choice; it can modify verbs, adjectives, numbers, and even negative words like 'never' or 'nobody', unlike nearly.

  almost 是最常用、最灵活的词，可以修饰动词、形容词、数字，甚至像 never、nobody 这样的否定词，而 nearly 很少这样用。

  We are almost finished with the big school project.

  这个大型学校项目我们差不多做完了。

• virtually

  Stronger than nearly or almost: it implies the remaining difference is so small it doesn't matter in practice, and sounds more formal, often with 'identical' or 'impossible'.

  virtually 语气比 nearly、almost 更强，暗示剩下的差别小到在实际中可以忽略不计，语气也更正式，常与 identical、impossible 等词搭配。

  The two designs look virtually identical to most people.

  在大多数人看来，这两个设计几乎一模一样。

• near 本词

  As this adverb, it sits right before an adjective (near empty, near perfect) or appears in fixed phrases like 'nowhere near'; it rarely modifies a verb alone and sounds more informal or journalistic.

  near 作这个意义的副词时，通常直接放在形容词前（near empty、near perfect）或用在 nowhere near 这类固定说法里，很少单独修饰动词，语气比其他几个词更随意、更像新闻用语。

  The stadium was near empty by the time we left.

  我们离开的时候，体育场几乎空无一人。

Nearly, almost, virtually, and near all mean not quite, but very close. Nearly and almost are the most common and neutral. Almost is the most flexible. Virtually is stronger and more formal; the gap barely matters. Near sits before an adjective, as in near empty.

这几个词在“几乎、差不多”这个意义上很接近，但语气强弱、正式程度和用法搭配有所不同：nearly 和 almost 最常见、最中性，virtually 语气更强、更正式，near 多用在形容词前的固定说法中，语气较随意。这里不比较 near 表示“靠近、临近”（距离上的“近”）的用法。