Meaning of 草原
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- grassland
- prairie
Measure word: 片
How to use 草原
草原 is used for large natural grasslands, like the ones in Inner Mongolia, not for a small patch of grass. It often appears in travel and nature contexts. Example: 夏天我们去内蒙古的草原骑马。(Xiàtiān wǒmen qù Nèiménggǔ de cǎoyuán qí mǎ.) In summer we went horseback riding on the grasslands of Inner Mongolia.
草 (cǎo) means grass, and 原 (yuán) means a wide, open plain. Put them together and you get a big open plain covered in grass: a grassland or prairie.
Common mistake: Learners often use 草原 for a park lawn or a yard. For that, say 草地 (cǎodì). Also watch the tones: 草 is third tone and 原 is second tone, so it is cǎoyuán, not cāoyuǎn.
草原 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.
草 cǎo · grass · 9 strokes
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原 yuán · former · 10 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 草原.
| 原因 | yuányīn | cause; origin |
| 原来 | yuánlái | original; former; originally; formerly; at first |
| 草地 | cǎodì | lawn; meadow |
| 原则 | yuánzé | principle; doctrine |
| 原料 | yuánliào | raw material |
| 原始 | yuánshǐ | first; original |
| 原理 | yuánlǐ | principle; theory |
| 原先 | yuánxiān | originally; original |
| 平原 | píngyuán | field; plain |
| 高原 | gāoyuán | plateau |
| 原有 | yuányǒu | original; former |
| 原谅 | yuánliàng | to excuse; to forgive |
Questions about 草原
What does 草原 mean?
草原 (cǎoyuán) means "grassland; prairie" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 草原?
草原 is made of 2 characters: 草 (9 strokes), 原 (10 strokes). That is 19 strokes in total.
Is 草原 an HSK word?
Yes. 草原 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 草原 and 草地?
草原 is a vast natural grassland stretching far into the distance. 草地 is any grassy area, such as a lawn or a meadow in a park. 请勿践踏草地 (Please keep off the grass) uses 草地, not 草原.
Does 原 in 草原 have the same meaning as in 原来 or 原因?
Not quite. In 草原 and 平原 (píngyuán, plain), 原 means open flat land. In words like 原来, 原因 and 原始, it carries the sense of original or source.