塞 meaning in English
to plug; to stop up; to stuff in; (bound form) a stopper; a cork
Meaning of 塞
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to plug; to stop up; to stuff in
- (bound form) a stopper; a cork
- (bound form) strategic stronghold
- (bound form) to block; to obstruct
How to use 塞
As a verb, 塞 (sāi) means to cram something into a space, and it is common in everyday speech, as in 塞满 (sāimǎn) and 塞车 (sāichē). Example: 他把书塞进包里。(Tā bǎ shū sāi jìn bāo lǐ.) He stuffed the book into his bag.
Picture the bottom part 土 (tǔ, earth) being packed under a roof-like top. You stuff earth into a gap to plug it, which is the core idea of 塞 (sāi), to stuff in or stop up.
Common mistake: Learners often read every 塞 as sāi. In formal compounds about blocking it is sè, as in 堵塞 (dǔsè) and 阻塞 (zǔsè), and in the sense of a fortress it is sài, as in 要塞 (yàosài).
塞 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
塞 sāi · to plug · 13 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 塞.
Questions about 塞
What does 塞 mean?
塞 (sāi) means "to plug; to stop up; to stuff in; (bound form) a stopper; a cork" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 塞?
塞 is made of 1 character: 塞 (13 strokes). That is 13 strokes in total.
Is 塞 an HSK word?
Yes. 塞 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 哇塞 mean and is it polite?
哇塞 (wāsāi) is a casual slang way to say wow. It is fine among friends, but it sounds too informal for serious or professional settings.
How do I know whether to say sāi, sè, or sài?
Use sāi when it is a standalone spoken verb like stuffing or plugging something, and in 塞车. Use sè in written compounds meaning obstruct, like 堵塞, and sài for strongholds like 要塞.