菜 meaning and stroke order
Vegetable; greens (CL:棵[ke1]); dish (of food) (CL:樣|样[yang4],道[dao4],盤|盘[pan2]); (of one's skills etc) weak; poor
How to write 菜, stroke by stroke
11 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 菜
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- vegetable; greens (CL:棵[ke1])
- dish (of food) (CL:樣|样[yang4],道[dao4],盤|盘[pan2])
- (of one's skills etc) weak; poor
- (coll.) (one's) type
How 菜 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Plant.
艹 gives the meaning and 采 hints at the sound.
Radical: 艹 (grass), shared by 421 characters on this site.
How to remember 菜
菜 is pictophonetic: the grass radical 艹 on top points to plants, and 采 (cǎi, to pick) below gives the sound. Picture picking plants from the garden to make a vegetable dish.
菜 means vegetables, but it also means any cooked dish, including meat dishes, and Chinese food in general, as in 中国菜. In casual speech it can describe weak skills, or someone who is your type. Example: 我们点几个菜吧。(Wǒmen diǎn jǐ ge cài ba.) Let's order a few dishes.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 菜 (cài, fourth tone) with 采 (cǎi, to pick) or 彩 (cǎi, color), which share the same sound part but have the third tone. Remember that only the plant version has 艹 on top.
Common words with 菜
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 菜单 | càidān | menu | HSK 2 |
| 白菜 | báicài | Chinese cabbage, esp. napa cabbage (Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis); sometimes used to re | HSK 3 |
| 蔬菜 | shūcài | vegetables | HSK 5 |
| 菜市场 | càishìchǎng | food market | HSK 7-9 |
| 菜鸟 | càiniǎo | (coll.) sb new to a particular subject; rookie | |
| 泡菜 | pàocài | pickled cabbage | |
| 小菜一碟 | xiǎocàiyīdié | a small appetizer; a piece of cake; very easy (idiom) | |
| 菜品 | càipǐn | culinary dish | |
| 做菜 | zuòcài | to cook; cooking | |
| 饭菜 | fàncài | food | |
| 菜肴 | càiyáo | vegetable and meat dishes; dish | |
| 开胃菜 | kāiwèicài | starter; appetizer | |
| 小菜 | xiǎocài | appetizer; small side dish | |
| 主菜 | zhǔcài | main course |
菜 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 菜
How many strokes are in 菜?
菜 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 菜 mean?
菜 (cài) means vegetable; greens (CL:棵[ke1]); dish (of food) (CL:樣|样[yang4],道[dao4],盤|盘[pan2]); (of one's skills etc) weak; poor. A common word with it is 菜单 (càidān), meaning "menu".
How do you pronounce 菜?
菜 is pronounced cài, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 菜?
The radical of 菜 is 艹, which carries the idea of "grass". Dictionaries list 菜 under this radical.
Is 菜 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 菜 is part of the HSK 1 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 1.
Does 菜 only mean vegetables?
No. It often means a dish of food, so 点菜 (diǎn cài) means to order food, meat included. To be clear that you mean vegetables, say 蔬菜 (shūcài) or 青菜 (qīngcài).
What does it mean when someone says 你好菜?
In slang, 菜 means bad at something, so 你好菜 (nǐ hǎo cài) means 'you are so bad at this,' often in gaming. A related word is 菜鸟 (càiniǎo), a rookie.