Meaning of 干杯
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to drink a toast
- Cheers! (proposing a toast)
- Here's to you!
- Bottoms up!
- lit. dry cup
How to use 干杯
干杯 is what people say when clinking glasses at a meal, a party, or a celebration. It can also be a verb meaning to drink a toast. Example: 为我们的友谊干杯 (wèi wǒmen de yǒuyì gānbēi) Here's to our friendship.
干 (gān) means dry and 杯 (bēi) means cup, so 干杯 is literally "dry cup." Picture yourself drinking until the cup is empty and dry.
Common mistake: Learners often say gànbēi with a fourth tone because they know 干 (gàn) from 干什么 (gàn shénme). In 干杯 it means dry and is first tone, gān, just like in 干净 (gānjìng).
干杯 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.
干 gān · dry · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
杯 bēi · cup · 8 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
Related words
Words that share a character with 干杯.
| 干什么 | gàn shénme | what are you doing?; what's he up to? |
| 干净 | gānjìng | clean; neat |
| 杯子 | bēizi | cup; glass |
| 干活儿 | gànhuór | erhua variant of 幹活|干活[gan4 huo2] |
| 干吗 | gànmá | variant of 幹嘛|干嘛[gan4 ma2] |
| 世界杯 | shìjièbēi | World Cup |
| 能干 | nénggàn | capable; competent |
| 饼干 | bǐnggān | biscuit; cracker; cookie |
| 干脆 | gāncuì | candid; direct and to the point |
| 干扰 | gānrǎo | to disturb; to interfere |
| 干预 | gānyù | to meddle; to intervene |
| 干涉 | gānshè | to interfere; to meddle |
Questions about 干杯
What does 干杯 mean?
干杯 (gānbēi) means "to drink a toast; Cheers! (proposing a toast)".
How do you write 干杯?
干杯 is made of 2 characters: 干 (3 strokes), 杯 (8 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 干杯 an HSK word?
Yes. 干杯 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 干杯 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 干杯 is written 乾杯.
Do I really have to finish my whole drink when someone says 干杯?
Literally it means to empty the glass, and at formal Chinese banquets people may expect it. In casual settings you can just take a sip. You can also say 随意 (suíyì), meaning drink as much as you like.
How do I say who or what I am toasting to?
Use 为 (wèi) before the thing you are toasting, then 干杯. For example, 为健康干杯 (wèi jiànkāng gānbēi) means To good health.