咳 (hāi): sound of sighing, (interjection expressing surprise, sorrow, regret, disappointment etc) oh, damn
咳 (hāi) is a Chinese character meaning “sound of sighing.” Classified as HSK Level 4 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 口 (semantic) and 亥 (phonetic). It ranks #2303 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 咳 mouth. Its radical form 口 (mouth) appears in many related characters such as 口 (kǒu, mouth), 叫 (jiào, to call, to be called), 右 (yòu, (bound form) right).
Definitions
- sound of sighing
- (interjection expressing surprise, sorrow, regret, disappointment etc) oh
- damn
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 咳 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 咳
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 止咳 | zhǐ ké | to suppress coughing |
| 百日咳 | bǎi rì ké | whooping cough |
| 干咳 | gān ké | to cough without phlegm |
| 北京咳 | běi jīng ké | "Beijing cough", respiratory problems caused by dry and polluted Beijing air, typically experienced by non-acclimated... |
| 咳血 | ké xiě | to cough up blood |
| 镇咳 | zhèn ké | cough suppressant |
| 止咳糖浆 | zhǐ ké táng jiāng | cough suppressant syrup |
| 咳呛 | ké qiàng | (dialect) to cough |
| 咳痰 | ké tán | to cough up phlegm |
咳 appears in 10 compound words: 40 as the first character, 50 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 咳 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (1)
Example Sentences
他咳干舌燥地讲了两个小时,终于说服了大家。
tā hāi gān jī zào dì jiǎng le liǎng gě xiǎo shí , zhōng yú shuō fú le dà jiā .
He talked for two hours, his throat dry from coughing, and finally won everyone over.
张淳淳曾罹“非结核分枝杆菌”是什么?医:咳嗽拖很久没好是警讯
zhāng chún chún céng 罹 fēi jié hé fēn zhī gān jūn shì shén má ? yī : hāi sòu tuō hěn jiǔ méi hǎo shì jǐng xùn
What is "non-tuberculous mycobacteria," which Zhang Chunchun once contracted? Doctor: A persistent cough that won't go away is a warning sign.
老年人子宫下垂的治疗方式有哪些?控制慢性咳嗽减少腹压吗
lǎo nián rén zǐ gōng xià chuí de zhì liáo fāng shì yǒu nǎ xiē ? kòng zhì màn xìng hāi sòu jiǎn shǎo fù yā ma
What are the treatment methods for uterine ptosis in the elderly? Does controlling chronic cough reduce abdominal pressure?
.....韩国瑜:不要化骨绵掌 赖清德:专长止咳化痰
. . . . . hán guó 瑜 : bù yāo huà gǔ mián zhǎng lài qīng dé : zhuān cháng zhǐ hāi huà tán
..... Han Guoyu: Don't turn bones into cotton palms Lai Qingde: Specialize in relieving cough and phlegm
爱和咳嗽是无法隐藏的。
ài hé késou shì wúfǎ yǐncáng de.
Love and cough cannot be hidden.
咳嗽糖浆有股甘草的味道。
Késou tángjiāng yǒu gǔ gāncǎo de wèidao.
The cough syrup has a licorice flavoring.
咳嗽什么帮好起来?
Késou shénme bāng hǎoqǐlai?
What helps cure a cough?
咳嗽的时候会痛吗?
Késou de shíhou huì tòng ma?
Does it hurt when you cough?
我咳嗽,还有点发烧。
Wǒ késou, hái yǒu diǎn fāshāo.
I have a cough and a little fever.
他得了肺炎,难怪他在不停的咳嗽。
Tā déle fèiyán, nánguài tā zài bù tíng de késou.
He's got pneumonia. No wonder he is coughing nonstop.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 咳 (hāi) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 咳 and 该?
How many strokes does 咳 have?
What is the radical of 咳?
What are the components of 咳?
What are common words containing 咳?
What characters sound the same as 咳 (hāi)?
Is 咳 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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