蜡 (là): wax
蜡 (là) is a Chinese character meaning “wax.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 虫 (semantic) and 昔 (phonetic). It ranks #2484 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 蜡 insect. Its radical form 虫 (insect) appears in many related characters such as 蛋 (dàn, egg), 虽 (suī, although), 虫 (chóng, insect).
Definitions
- wax
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 蜡 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 蜡烛noun | là zhú | candle |
| 蜡笔noun | là bǐ | crayon (wax type) |
| 蜡像noun | là xiàng | waxwork |
| 打蜡verb | dǎ là | to wax (a car, floor etc) |
| 蜡像馆noun | là xiàng guǎn | wax museum |
| 石蜡noun | shí là | paraffin wax |
| 发蜡noun | fà là | pomade |
| 蜡纸noun | là zhǐ | wax paper |
| 白蜡树noun | bái là shù | Chinese ash (Fraxinus chinensis), whose bark, flowers and leaves are used in TCM |
| 白蜡noun | bái là | white wax from Chinese white wax bug (Ericerus pela) |
| 味同嚼蜡phrase | wèi tóng jiáo là | lit. tastes as if one is chewing wax (idiom) |
| 蜂蜡noun | fēng là | beeswax |
| 蜡台noun | là tái | candlestick |
| 蜡质 | là zhì | waxiness |
| 蜡染noun | là rǎn | batik (color printing on cloth using wax) |
蜡 appears in 43 compound words: 40 as the first character, 42 as the last, and 19 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 蜡 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (1)
Example Sentences
蜡烛在停电的时候很有用，可以提供照明。
Làzhú zài tíngdiàn de shíhou hěn yǒuyòng, kěyǐ tígōng zhàomíng.
Candles are very useful during power outages; they can provide lighting.
海南椰子壳香薰蜡烛礼盒|春日换新氛围感拉满
hǎi nán yē zǐ qiào xiāng 薰 là zhú lǐ hé chūn rì huàn xīn fēn wéi gǎn lā mǎn
Hainan Coconut Shell Scented Candle Gift Set | Perfect for Spring Refresh with a Cozy Atmosphere
...市道冷清?糖水铺老板长文叹“最担心灯油火蜡都蚀埋” 惹网民热议:系餐厅搞死自己?
. . . shì dào lěng qīng ? táng shuǐ pù lǎo bǎn cháng wén tàn zuì dān xīn dēng yóu huǒ là dōu shí mái rě wǎng mín rè yì : xì cān tīng gǎo sǐ zì jǐ ?
...Business is slow? A dessert shop owner vents in a long post, saying, "My biggest fear is that even the cost of kerosene and candles will eat into my profits," sparking heated online debate: Are restaurants killing themselves?
洋白蜡花粉过敏原检测试剂盒获批上市
yáng bái là huā fěn guò mǐn yuán jiǎn cè shì jì hé huò pī shàng shì
Allergen Test Kit for White Ash Pollen Approved for Market Release
快讯/基隆民宅烈焰冲天!独居男疑点蜡烛酿灾背部烧伤
kuài xùn jī lóng mín zhái liè yàn chōng tiān ! dú jū nán yí diǎn là zhú niàng zāi bèi bù shāo shāng
Breaking News: Blaze Rages at Keelung Home! Man Living Alone Suspected of Causing Fire by Lighting Candle; Suffers Burns to Back
肌肤暗沉蜡黄还老得快?“糖化习惯”竟是胶原蛋白快速...
jī fū àn chén là huáng hái lǎo dé kuài ? táng huà xí guàn jìng shì jiāo yuán dàn bái kuài sù . . .
Is your skin looking dull, sallow, and aging prematurely? It turns out that "glycation habits" are actually causing collagen to break down rapidly...
许个愿，然后吹熄蜡烛吧。
Xǔ gè yuàn, ránhòu chuīxī làzhú ba.
Make a wish and blow out the candles.
蜡烛没有了芯，就不能算是蜡烛了。
Làzhú méiyǒu le xīn, jiù bù néng suànshì làzhú le.
A candle without a wick is no candle at all.
蜡烛出去，而不必被扑灭。
Làzhú chūqù, ér bù bì bèi pūmiè.
The candle went out instead of having been put out.
汤姆吹灭了蛋糕上的所有蜡烛。
Tāngmǔ chuī miè le dàngāo shàng de suǒyǒu làzhú.
Tom blew out all the candles on the cake.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 虫 (insect) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 蜡 (là) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 蜡 and 借?
How many strokes does 蜡 have?
What is the radical of 蜡?
What are the components of 蜡?
What are common words containing 蜡?
What characters sound the same as 蜡 (là)?
Is 蜡 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 蜡 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.