皂 (zào): soap, black
皂 (zào) is a Chinese character meaning “soap.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 白 (structural) and 七 (structural). It ranks #2789 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Definitions
- soap
- black
Stroke Order
Practice writing 皂 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 肥皂noun | féi zào | soap |
| 香皂noun | xiāng zào | perfumed soap |
| 肥皂泡noun | féi zào pào | soap bubble |
| 青红皂白phrase | qīng hóng zào bái | the rights and wrongs of a matter (idiom) |
| 肥皂沫noun | féi zào mò | soapy lather |
| 不分青红皂白phrase | bù fēn qīng hóng zào bái | not distinguishing red-green or black-white (idiom) |
| 不问青红皂白phrase | bù wèn qīng hóng zào bái | not distinguishing red-green or black-white (idiom) |
| 不分皂白 | bù fēn zào bái | not distinguishing black or white (idiom) |
| 给皂器 | jǐ zào qì | soap dispenser |
| 洗发皂noun | xǐ fà zào | shampoo |
| 肥皂水noun | féi zào shuǐ | soapy water |
| 罗皂 | luó zào | variant of 囉唣|啰唣 |
| 皂石noun | zào shí | soapstone |
| 皂角noun | zào jiǎo | Chinese honey locust (Gleditsia sinensis) |
| 牛骥同皂 | niú jì tóng zào | cow and famous steed at the same trough (idiom) |
皂 appears in 22 compound words: 36 as the first character, 23 as the last, and 41 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 皂 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (3)
Example Sentences
写好皂字需要掌握正确的笔画顺序。
xiě hǎo zào zì xū yāo zhǎng wò zhēng què de bǐ huà shùn xù .
To write the character "皂" correctly, you need to master the proper stroke order.
然而这个系列也有缺点，无论是香皂、香水还是护肤品，开心果产品线的香味都特别明显。
rán ér zhè gè xì liè yě yǒu quē diǎn , wú lùn shì xiāng zào , xiāng shuǐ hái shì hù fū pǐn , kāi xīn guǒ chǎn pǐn xiàn de xiāng wèi dōu tè bié míng xiǎn .
However, this line also has its drawbacks: whether it’s soap, perfume, or skincare products, the scent of the Pistachio line is particularly strong.
我们的中医药文化体验项目，可以教大家制作香囊、药皂、药膳等。
wǒ men de zhōng yī yào wén huà tǐ yàn xiàng mù , kě yǐ jiào dà jiā zhì zuò xiāng náng , yào zào , yào shàn děng .
Our Traditional Chinese Medicine cultural experience program teaches participants how to make scented pouches, herbal soaps, and medicinal dishes.
看了老爸评测，C 店小作坊的皂不会买。
kàn le lǎo bà píng cè , C diàn xiǎo zuò fāng de zào bù huì mǎi .
After watching Dad's review, I won't buy soap from small workshops on C-Store.
妇科白斑怎么治疗才能彻底根除?禁用碱性肥皂清洗外阴吗
fù kē bái bān zěn má zhì liáo cái néng chè de gēn chú ? jīn yòng 碱 xìng féi zào qīng xǐ wài yīn ma
How can vaginal leukoplakia be completely cured? Should alkaline soap be avoided when washing the vulva?
...说是挑食的人:基因决定你吃的香菜有没有肥皂味
. . . shuō shì tiāo shí de rén : jī yīn jué dìng nǐ chī de xiāng cài yǒu méi yǒu féi zào wèi
... Say it's a picky eater: genes determine whether the coriander you eat has a soapy taste
肥皂可以清除脏汙。
Féizào kěyǐ qīngchú zāng wū.
Soap can clean grime.
这块肥皂里添加了天然香料。
Zhè kuài féizào lǐ tiānjiā le tiānrán xiāngliào.
This soap is infused with natural fragrances.
他们用肥皂洗手。
Tāmen yòng féizào xǐshǒu.
They wash their hands with soap.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 皂 (zào) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 皂 and 白?
How many strokes does 皂 have?
What is the radical of 皂?
What are the components of 皂?
What are common words containing 皂?
What characters sound the same as 皂 (zào)?
Is 皂 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 皂 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.