柴 (chái): firewood, lean (of meat), thin (of a person)
柴 (chái) is a Chinese character meaning “firewood.” Classified as HSK Level 6 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 此 (phonetic) and 木 (semantic). It ranks #1954 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 柴 wood. 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
- firewood
- lean (of meat)
- thin (of a person)
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 柴 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 柴
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 柴油 | chái yóu | diesel fuel |
| 柴火 | chái huo | plant material used as fuel (firewood, straw, leaves etc) |
| 骨瘦如柴 | gǔ shòu rú chái | (idiom) as thin as a match |
| 木柴 | mù chái | firewood |
| 柴可夫斯基 | chái kě fū sī jī | Tchaikovsky (1840-1893), Russian composer |
| 劈柴 | pī chái | to chop firewood |
| 柴油机 | chái yóu jī | diesel engine |
| 柴科夫斯基 | chái kē fū sī jī | Piotr Ilyich Tchaikowsky (1840-1893), Russian composer, composer of 6 symphonies and the opera Eugene Onegin |
| 众人拾柴火焰高 | zhòng rén shí chái huǒ yàn gāo | lit. when everybody gathers fuel, the flames are higher (proverb) |
| 柴田 | chái tián | Shibata (Japanese surname and place name) |
| 不当家不知柴米贵 | bù dāng jiā bù zhī chái mǐ guì | a person who doesn't manage a household would not be aware how expensive it is (idiom) |
| 大柴旦行政委员会 | dà chái dàn xíng zhèng wěi yuán huì | Da Qaidam county level subdivision of Haixi Mongol and Tibetan autonomous prefecture 海西蒙古族藏族自治州, Qinghai |
| 柴油发动机 | chái yóu fā dòng jī | diesel engine |
| 留得青山在，不怕没柴烧 | liú de qīng shān zài , bù pà méi chái shāo | While the green hills last, there'll be wood to burn (idiom). Where there's life there's hope. |
| 大柴旦行政区 | dà chái dàn xíng zhèng qū | Da Qaidam county level subdivision of Haixi Mongol and Tibetan autonomous prefecture 海西蒙古族藏族自治州[Hai3 xi1 Meng3 gu3 zu... |
柴 appears in 46 compound words: 50 as the first character, 24 as the last, and 26 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 柴 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (4)
lit. intense fire to dry wood (idiom); inferno in a woodpile; fig. consuming passion between lovers
lit. intense fire to dry wood (idiom); inferno in a woodpile; fig. consuming passion between lovers
Example Sentences
冬天烧柴火取暖，屋子里暖洋洋的。
Dōngtiān shāo cháihuo qǔnuǎn, wūzi lǐ nuǎnyángyáng de.
Burning firewood for warmth in winter makes the room cozy and warm.
台美混血好手费柴德抵台 中职送上吉祥物欧告娃娃
tái měi hùn xiě hǎo shǒu fèi chái dé dǐ tái zhōng zhí sòng shàng jí xiáng wù ōu gào wá wá
Taiwanese-American mixed-race player Fei Chaide arrived in Taiwan and sent the mascot Ou Gao doll
星岛申诉王|盆菜被嫌劣食 屏山传人坚守柴火制盆菜 父女档延续围村风味
xīng dǎo shēn sù wáng pén cài bèi xián liè shí bǐng shān chuán rén jiān shǒu chái huǒ zhì pén cài fù nǚ dàng yán xù wéi cūn fēng wèi
Sing Tao Appeal King|Poon Choi was suspected of being inferior food, and the descendants of Ping Shan insisted on making poon choi with firewood, and the father and daughter stall continued the flavor of the surrounding village
經典賽混血好手費爾柴德敲安 守護者3比11輸給道奇
經 diǎn 賽 hùn xiě hǎo shǒu 費 爾 chái dé qiāo ān shǒu 護 zhě bǐ 輸 給 dào qí
[Translation pending - quota exceeded]
中國玉柴儘管營收超預期仍下跌逾5%
zhōng 國 yù chái 儘 guǎn 營 shōu chāo 預 qī réng xià diē yú
China Yuchai fell more than 5% despite revenue exceeding expectations
柴火灶里烧出的“团聚”,藏着最浓的奉贤年味...
chái huǒ zào lǐ shāo chū de tuán jù , zàng zhe zuì nóng de fèng xián nián wèi . . .
The warmth of family gatherings, born from the wood-fired stove, holds the richest flavor of the Fengxian New Year...
你有火柴吗？很抱歉，我不抽菸。
Nǐ yǒu huǒchái ma? hěn bàoqiàn, wǒ bù chōuyān.
"Do you have a match?" "I'm sorry, but I don't smoke."
这个取暖装置用柴油作为燃料。
Zhège qǔnuǎn zhuāngzhì yòng cháiyóu zuòwéi ránliào.
This heating equipment uses diesel as fuel.
他摔断了椅子当柴火。
Tā shuāiduàn le yǐzi dāng cháihuo.
He broke up the chair for firewood.
再往火里添些木柴。
Zài wǎng huǒ lǐ tiān xiē mùchái.
Put some more wood on the fire.
Character Family
Homophones — Characters pronounced chái
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 柴 (chái) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 柴 and 厚?
How many strokes does 柴 have?
What is the radical of 柴?
What are the components of 柴?
What are common words containing 柴?
What characters sound the same as 柴 (chái)?
Is 柴 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 柴 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear native pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.