(zǎi) — (dialectal) son, kid (colloquial, intimate); young animal, whelp, cub

Definition

Colloquial, often dialectal word for a child or young animal (kid, whelp, cub). 崽子 is a more rural or pejorative variant, while 小孩 is the standard word for a child.

noun
(dialectal) sonkid (colloquial, intimate)young animalwhelpcub
Measure word ·

Examples

  • Zhè shì nǐ de xiǎo zǎi ma? zhēn kě ài!
    Is this your little kid? So cute!
  • Mǔ gǒu gāng shēng le yì wō xiǎo zǎi.
    The female dog just gave birth to a litter of puppies.
  • Tā suī rán shì chéng lǐ rén, dàn shuō huà hái xiàng gè xiāng xia zǎi.
    Although he's a city person, he still talks like a country kid.

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
shānmountain
Sound part声符shēngfú
zǎi
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

崽 pairs 山 (mountain) with 思; 思 gives the sound, and 山 gives the meaning clue.

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.