养 (yǎng): to raise (animals), to bring up (children), to keep (pets)
养 (yǎng) is a Chinese character meaning “to raise (animals).” Classified as HSK Level 3 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 羊 (phonetic) and 儿 (semantic). It ranks #760 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 养 child. Its radical form 八 (eight) appears in many related characters such as 八 (bā, eight), 六 (liù, six), 关 (guān, mountain pass).
Definitions
- to raise (animals)
- to bring up (children)
- to keep (pets)
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 养 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 养
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 培养verb | péi yǎng | to cultivate | 5 |
| 营养noun | yíng yǎng | nutrition | 5 |
| 养老院noun | yǎng lǎo yuàn | nursing home | 6 |
| 养老verb | yǎng lǎo | to provide for the elderly (family members) | 6 |
| 养成verb | yǎng chéng | to cultivate | 4 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 收养 | shōu yǎng | to take in and care for (an elderly person, a dog etc) |
| 抚养 | fǔ yǎng | to foster |
| 领养 | lǐng yǎng | to adopt (a child, pet etc) |
| 养活 | yǎng huo | to provide for |
| 教养 | jiào yǎng | to educate |
| 养老金 | yǎng lǎo jīn | pension |
| 养育 | yǎng yù | to rear |
| 疗养院 | liáo yǎng yuàn | sanatorium |
| 赡养费 | shàn yǎng fèi | alimony |
| 养家 | yǎng jiā | to support a family |
| 寄养 | jì yǎng | to place in the care of sb (a child, pet etc) |
| 喂养 | wèi yǎng | to feed (a child, domestic animal etc) |
| 保养 | bǎo yǎng | to take good care of (or conserve) one's health |
| 疗养 | liáo yǎng | to get well |
| 养父 | yǎng fù | foster father |
养 appears in 100 compound words: 37 as the first character, 47 as the last, and 16 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 养 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (16)
to tolerate is to nurture an evildoer (idiom); spare the rod and spoil the child
to rest and recuperate; to convalesce; (of society) to recover (after a war or upheaval) and regain vitality
to not eliminate bad people or the enemy and bring future trouble to oneself
to support one's family (often with the meaning of to barely manage to do so with one's meagre income)
to look after one's aged parents and arrange proper burial after they die
to be looked after in life and given a proper burial thereafter (idiom)
to tolerate is to nurture an evildoer (idiom); spare the rod and spoil the child
Showing 12 of 16 idioms containing 养.
Example Sentences
这个养字的意思与它的部首有关。
zhè gě yǎng zì de yì sī yú tā de bù shǒu yǒu guān .
The meaning of the character "养" is related to its radical.
食物糖份怎么看?营养成分表中“糖”和“碳水”要分开看吗
shí wù táng fèn zěn má kàn ? yíng yǎng chéng fēn biǎo zhōng táng hé tàn shuǐ yāo fēn kāi kàn ma
What do you think about food sugar? Should "sugar" and "carbohydrates" be separated in the nutritional facts table?
年后猪价重挫非美猪惹祸?养猪协会:与进口猪有关
nián hòu zhū jià chóng cuò fēi měi zhū rě huò ? yǎng zhū xié huì : yǔ jìn kǒu zhū yǒu guān
After the year, pig prices plummeted, and non-American pigs caused trouble? Pig Breeding Association: Related to imported pigs
枸杞泡水、做养生操:这些美国人正努力活得像中国人
枸 杞 pāo shuǐ , zuò yǎng shēng cāo : zhè xiē měi guó rén zhèng nǔ lì huó dé xiàng zhōng guó rén
Goji berries soaked in water, doing health exercises: these Americans are trying to live like Chinese
吃很少却瘦不下来?营养师揭真相:恐害体重暴走
chī hěn shǎo què shòu bù xià lái ? yíng yǎng shī jiē zhēn xiāng : kǒng hài tǐ chóng bào zǒu
Eat very little but can't lose weight? Nutritionist reveals the truth: fear of weight loss
冬天手脚冰冷 中医教你经络保养术
dōng tiān shǒu jiǎo bīng lěng zhōng yī jiào nǐ jīng lào bǎo yǎng shù
In winter, your hands and feet are cold, and traditional Chinese medicine teaches you meridian maintenance techniques
有没有人要养可爱的小猫？
Yǒuméiyǒu rén yào yǎng kě'ài de xiǎomāo?
Is there anyone who wants to keep the cute kitten?
她是怎么抚养孩子的？
Tā shì zěnme fǔyǎng háizi de?
How does she bring up her children?
「干嘛呢？」「在看我养的植物生长呢。」
「 gànmá ne?」「 zài kàn wǒ yǎng de zhíwù shēngzhǎng ne.」
"What are you doing?" "I'm watching my plants grow."
好习惯是从小养成的。
Hǎo xíguàn shì cóng xiǎo yǎngchéng de.
Good habits should be cultivated in childhood.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 养 (yǎng) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 养 and 下?
How many strokes does 养 have?
What is the radical of 养?
What are the components of 养?
What are common words containing 养?
What characters sound the same as 养 (yǎng)?
Is 养 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 养 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear native pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.