颗 meaning in English
classifier for small spheres, pearls, corn grains, teeth, hearts, satellites etc
Meaning of 颗
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- classifier for small spheres, pearls, corn grains, teeth, hearts, satellites etc
How to use 颗
颗 is a measure word for small, round or grain-like things, such as stars, teeth, pearls, candies and even hearts. Example: 我掉了一颗牙。(Wǒ diào le yì kē yá.) I lost a tooth.
颗 is made of 果 (guǒ, fruit) on the left and 页 (yè, head) on the right. Picture small round things like fruit or heads, and you have the classifier for small round objects.
Common mistake: Learners often write 棵 (kē, classifier for trees and plants) when they mean 颗, since both are read kē. Use 一棵树 (yì kē shù) for a tree but 一颗星 (yì kē xīng) for a star.
颗 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.
颗 kē · classifier for small spheres · 14 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 颗.
| 颗粒 | kēlì | kernel; granule |
Questions about 颗
What does 颗 mean?
颗 (kē) means "classifier for small spheres, pearls, corn grains, teeth, hearts, satellites etc" and is used as a measure word.
How do you write 颗?
颗 is made of 1 character: 颗 (14 strokes). That is 14 strokes in total.
Is 颗 an HSK word?
Yes. 颗 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 颗 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 颗 is written 顆.
Can 颗 be used for abstract things?
Yes, it is commonly used with 心 (xīn, heart) in a figurative sense, as in 一颗爱心 (yì kē àixīn), a loving heart. It also appears in 一颗种子 (yì kē zhǒngzi), a seed, which is often used metaphorically.
What is the difference between 颗 and 粒 (lì)?
Both count small round things, and they overlap for items like rice or pills. 粒 tends to be used for very tiny grains such as rice or sand, while 颗 is also used for larger round objects like stars, satellites and teeth. The word 颗粒 (kēlì) combines them to mean granule.