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吃醋 (chī cù) — to be jealous (of a rival in love)

Definition

吃醋 (chī cù) literally 'to eat vinegar' — a fixed expression meaning to feel jealous about a love rival. It's specifically about romance, not general envy of others' success.

verb
to be jealous (of a rival in love)

Examples

  • ，吃醋。
    Tā kàn dào nán péng you hé bié de nǚ shēng shuō huà, jiù chī cù le.
    She got jealous when she saw her boyfriend talking to another girl.
  • ，。
    Tā chī le wǒ de cù, yīn wèi wǒ hé tā de qián nǚ yǒu shì péng you.
    He was jealous of me because I'm friends with his ex-girlfriend.
  • 吃醋，。
    Bié chī cù le, tā zhǐ shì wǒ de tóng shì ér yǐ.
    Don't be jealous — she's just my colleague.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

吃chīeat
醋cùvinegar

吃 means eat and 醋 means vinegar, so the image of eating vinegar expresses jealousy.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
乞
乞qǐ吃chī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

吃 combines 口 (mouth) with 乞, which gives the sound; it originally wrote a word meaning to stutter.

Open 吃 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
酉酉yǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
昔
昔xī醋cù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

醋 is formed by placing 酉 beside 昔; 昔 supplies the sound, and 酉 marks the meaning.

Open 醋 →
Appears in
Emotions & FeelingsRomance & Marriage

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