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踩 (cǎi) — to step on; to tread on; to press (a pedal); to pedal; to downvote (online)

Definition

The everyday word for 'step on / press down' (a pedal, brake) and the common online verb for downvoting. 比 踏 more colloquial and more often used for deliberate pressing; 践踏 is for figurative trampling of rights/dignity.

verb
to step onto tread onto press (a pedal)to pedalto downvote (online)
Easily confused

Examples

  • 踩。
    Wǒ bù xiǎo xīn cǎi dào le yí kuài xiāng jiāo pí.
    I accidentally stepped on a banana peel.
  • 踩。
    Tā shǐ jìn cǎi le yí xià shā chē.
    He pressed the brake hard.
  • 踩。
    Zhè ge huí dá bèi hěn duō rén cǎi le.
    This answer was downvoted by many people.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
足足zúfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
采
采cǎi踩
Same sound today

踩 combines 足, a foot, with 采 for its sound.

Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6HSK 2.0 Level 53000 Most Frequent Chinese Words5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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