垃 (lā): garbage
垃 (lā) is a Chinese character meaning “garbage.” Classified as HSK Level 4 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 土 (semantic) and 立 (phonetic). It ranks #2509 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 垃 earth. Its radical form 土 (earth) appears in many related characters such as 在 (zài, to exist), 地 (dì, earth, ground), 场 (chǎng, field, place).
Definitions
- garbage
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 垃 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 垃
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 垃圾桶noun | lā jī tǒng | rubbish bin |
| 垃圾箱noun | lā jī xiāng | rubbish can |
| 垃圾堆noun | lā jī duī | garbage heap |
| 垃圾车noun | lā jī chē | garbage truck (or other vehicle) |
| 生活垃圾 | shēng huó lā jī | domestic garbage |
| 垃圾分类 | lā jī fēn lèi | waste sorting |
| 垃圾食品noun | lā jī shí pǐn | junk food |
| 垃圾工noun | lā jī gōng | garbage collector |
| 垃圾电邮 | lā jī diàn yóu | see 垃圾郵件|垃圾邮件 |
| 垃圾邮件noun | lā jī yóu jiàn | junk mail |
| 垃圾股noun | lā jī gǔ | junk bonds |
| 洋垃圾noun | yáng lā jī | trash or used goods from Western countries |
| 土坷垃noun | tǔ kē lā | (dialect) clod of earth |
| 垃圾筒noun | lā jī tǒng | trashcan |
| 坷垃noun | kē lā | (dialect) clod (of earth) |
垃 appears in 16 compound words: 75 as the first character, 13 as the last, and 13 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 垃 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (1)
Example Sentences
垃圾分类是保护环境的重要措施,每个人都应该参与。
Lājī fēnlèi shì bǎohù huánjìng de zhòngyào cuòshī, měi gè rén dōu yīnggāi cānyù.
Garbage sorting is an important measure for environmental protection; everyone should participate.
牛池湾纪律部队宿舍失火 近天台后楼梯垃圾桶焚毁
niú chí wān jì lǜ bù duì sù shě shī huǒ jìn tiān tái hòu lóu tī lā jī tǒng fén huǐ
A fire broke out in the Niu Chi Wan Disciplined Forces dormitory and burned the trash can on the back stairs near the roof
...贡热门景点及露营地录26宗执法 包括乱抛垃圾、非法生火等
. . . gòng rè mén jǐng diǎn jí lù yíng dì lù 2 6 zōng zhí fǎ bāo kuò luàn pāo lā jī , fēi fǎ shēng huǒ děng
... 26 law enforcement cases were recorded at popular attractions and campsites in Gong, including littering and illegal fires
巨型Hello Kitty弃垃圾桶旁 将军澳街坊目击前传后传 网民忆凶...
jù xíng H e l l o K i t t y qì lā jī tǒng páng jiāng jūn ào jiē fāng mù jī qián chuán hòu chuán wǎng mín yì xiōng . . .
Giant Hello Kitty abandoned next to the trash can Tseung Kwan O neighborhood witnessed the prequel and the sequel Netizens remembered the murder...
张艺谋谈间谍通过“垃圾桶交接加密手机”:国安同志说..
zhāng yì móu tán jiān dié tōng guò lā jī tǒng jiāo jiē jiā mì shǒu jī guó ān tóng zhì shuō . .
Zhang Yimou on spies handing over encrypted cell phones through "trash cans": State Security comrades say...
张艺谋回应在电影《惊蛰无声》中“间谍在垃圾桶交接手..
zhāng yì móu huí yīng zài diàn yǐng jīng 蛰 mó shēng zhōng jiān dié zài lā jī tǒng jiāo jiē shǒu . .
Zhang Yimou responds to "spies exchanging hands in garbage cans" in the movie "The Sting is Silent...
很多人跳过栏杆,还丢垃圾。
Hěn duō rén tiào guo lángān, hái diū lājī.
A lot of people climb the railing, and even litter.
汤姆屯了很多垃圾。
Tāngmǔ tún le hěn duō lājī.
Tom has accumulated a lot of junk.
给丢到垃圾桶里去。
Gěi diū dào lājītǒng lǐ qù.
Bung it in the bin.
河对岸有很多的垃圾。
Hé duì'àn yǒu hěn duō de lājī.
There's a lot of trash on the far bank of the river.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 土 (earth) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 垃 (lā) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 垃 and 粒?
How many strokes does 垃 have?
What is the radical of 垃?
What are the components of 垃?
What are common words containing 垃?
What characters sound the same as 垃 (lā)?
Is 垃 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 垃 with real-time feedback
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