杯 (bēi): cup, glass
杯 (bēi) is a Chinese character meaning “cup, glass.” Classified as HSK Level 1 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 木 (semantic) and 不 (phonetic). It ranks #1388 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 杯 tree. Its radical form 木 (tree) appears in many related characters such as 本 (běn, (bound form) root), 机 (jī, machine, opportunity), 条 (tiáo, strip).
Definitions
- cup, glass
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 杯 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 杯
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 杯子 | bēi zi | cup |
| 奖杯 | jiǎng bēi | trophy cup |
| 纸杯 | zhǐ bēi | paper cup |
| 举杯 | jǔ bēi | to toast sb (with wine etc) |
| 酒杯 | jiǔ bēi | wine cup |
| 世界杯 | shì jiè bēi | World Cup |
| 玻璃杯 | bō li bēi | drinking glass |
| 茶杯 | chá bēi | teacup |
| 高脚杯 | gāo jiǎo bēi | goblet |
| 烧杯 | shāo bēi | beaker (glassware) |
| 杯水车薪 | bēi shuǐ chē xīn | lit. a cup of water on a burning cart of firewood (idiom) |
| 贪杯 | tān bēi | to drink in excess |
| 交杯酒 | jiāo bēi jiǔ | formal exchange of cups of wine between bride and groom as traditional wedding ceremony |
| 保温杯 | bǎo wēn bēi | thermal insulation cup (or bottle) |
| 量杯 | liáng bēi | measuring cup |
杯 appears in 58 compound words: 26 as the first character, 64 as the last, and 10 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 杯 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (6)
false alarm; self-created suspicion; atmosphere of fear and admonition
describes wine cups and plates spread over a dining table in disarray after a feast
Example Sentences
服务员不小心打翻了咖啡杯，弄脏了客人的衣服。
Fúwùyuán bù xiǎoxīn dǎfān le kāfēibēi, nòngzāng le kèrén de yīfu.
The waiter accidentally knocked over the coffee cup, staining the customer's clothes.
...期喝了酒对宝宝有没有影响?哪怕只喝了一小杯啤酒
. . . qī hē le jiǔ duì bǎo bǎo yǒu méi yǒu yǐng xiǎng ? nǎ pà zhī hē le yī xiǎo bēi pí jiǔ
... Does drinking alcohol affect the baby? Even if it's just a small beer
六旬妇认选举期间转贴呼吁杯葛选举贴文 判囚2月准缓刑1年半
liù xún fù rèn xuǎn jǔ qī jiān zhuǎn tiē hū xū bēi 葛 xuǎn jǔ tiē wén pàn qiú 2 yuè zhǔn huǎn xíng 1 nián bàn
A sixty-year-old woman who posted a call for a boycott of the election during the election was sentenced to two months in prison and given a one-and-a-half year probation
卡尔梅科娃体操世界杯德国站勇夺双金
kǎ ěr méi kē wá tǐ cāo shì jiè bēi dé guó zhàn yǒng duó shuāng jīn
Kalmykova won double gold at the Gymnastics World Cup in Germany
世界杯商机在即 西南管理区敦促酒店业立即行动
shì jiè bēi shāng jī zài jí xī nán guǎn lǐ qū dūn cù jiǔ diàn yè lì jí háng dòng
World Cup business opportunity is imminent Southwest Management Region urges the hospitality industry to act now
一杯热水赠归人 一句感谢显温情 环兰高速人:...
yī bēi rè shuǐ zèng guī rén yī gōu gǎn xiè xiǎn wēn qíng huán lán gāo sù rén . . .
A cup of hot water to the returnees A word of thanks to show warmth Huanlan Highway people:...
可以给我一杯茶吗？
Kěyǐ gěi wǒ yī bēi chá ma?
Can I have a cup of tea?
晚饭前您想喝一杯吗？
Wǎnfàn qián nín xiǎng hē yī bēi ma?
Would you like to have a drink before dinner?
要不要再来一杯咖啡？
Yàobù yào zài lái yī bēi kāfēi?
How about another cup of coffee?
比赛结束后喝一杯怎么样？
Bǐsài jiéshù hòu hē yī bēi zěnmeyàng?
How about a drink after the game?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 杯 (bēi) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 杯 and 坏?
How many strokes does 杯 have?
What is the radical of 杯?
What are the components of 杯?
What are common words containing 杯?
What characters sound the same as 杯 (bēi)?
Is 杯 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 杯 with real-time feedback
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