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家常菜 (jiā cháng cài) — home cooking; home-style dishes

Definition

家常菜 literally means 'home-style cooking' — the everyday dishes you eat at home, simple and familiar rather than fancy restaurant fare. It contrasts with banquet or specialty dishes by focusing on ordinary, comforting meals.

noun
home cookinghome-style dishes

Examples

  • 家常菜。
    Zhè jiā guǎn zi de jiā cháng cài zhēn bú cuò.
    The home cooking at this restaurant is really good.
  • 家常菜。
    Wǒ zuì xǐ huan chī mā ma zuò de jiā cháng cài.
    I love eating my mom's home cooking the most.
  • 家常菜。
    Zhè jiā cān tīng de jiā cháng cài wèi dào gēn jiā lǐ yí yàng.
    The home cooking at this restaurant tastes just like at home.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

家常home-style
家jiāhome常chángusual
偏正Modifier + head
菜càidish

Home and usual together describe the dishes, giving the sense of ordinary family meals.

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
宀宀miánroof
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢑓
𢑓𢑓家jiā
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The early drawing of 家 showed a roof 宀 over a male-pig sign 𢑓 that gave the pronunciation; the lower part later changed shape.

Open 家 →

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
巾巾jīncloth
Sound part声符shēngfú
尚
尚shàng常cháng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

常 pairs 巾, a cloth, with 尚 as a sound part; the form originally referred to a lower garment.

Open 常 →

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
采
采cǎi菜cài
Same sound today

菜 has 艹 (grass/plants) on top and 采 below; the top part shows it is a plant, while 采 gives the sound.

Open 菜 →
Appears in
Food (General)

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