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插嘴 (chā zuǐ) — to interrupt (someone speaking), to butt in

Definition

插嘴 (chā zuǐ) is informal/colloquial 'to butt in' mid-conversation. Unlike 打断 (which physically breaks the speaker's flow), 插嘴 just means squeezing your own comment in. Verbs on its own; 嘴 is not separable here.

verb
to interrupt (someone speaking)to butt in

Examples

  • ，插嘴。
    Tā shuō huà de shí hou, bié rén zuì hǎo bú yào chā zuǐ.
    When he's speaking, others had better not interrupt.
  • ，。
    Wǒ zhèng xiǎng shuō huà, tā jiù chā le yí jù zuǐ.
    I was just about to speak, and she cut in with a remark.
  • ，插嘴。
    Tā men zài tǎo lùn zhòng yào wèn tí, nǐ bié chā zuǐ.
    They're discussing an important issue — don't butt in.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

插chāinsert
嘴zuǐmouth

Putting 嘴 into a conversation, like 插 it in, describes interrupting or butting in.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 插 →

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kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
觜
觜zī嘴
Same sound today

嘴 pairs 口 (mouth) with 觜, which supplies its sound.

Open 嘴 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Communication & Speech

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