点菜 (diǎn cài) — to order dishes (from a menu) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Separable verb: 点 + 菜, meaning to choose and order food from a menu (literally 'pick dishes'). The 菜 goes after the object, as in 点一个菜 / 菜点好了.

verb

to order dishes (from a menu)

Examples

，点菜。
Fú wù yuán, wǒ men xiǎng diǎn cài.
Waiter, we'd like to order.
。
Wǒ yǐ jīng diǎn le yí gè cài hé yí gè tāng.
I've already ordered one dish and one soup.
点菜？。
Nǐ diǎn cài le ma? wǒ men dù zi hěn è.
Have you ordered? We're very hungry.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

点 'order/choose' + 菜 'dishes' gives the sense of ordering dishes.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 點; 点 is its simplified writing.

黑占點

Meaning part形符xíngfú

黑黑hēiblack

Sound part声符shēngfú

占

占zhàn點diǎn(r)

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 點 pairs 黑 (black) with 占 for its sound; the simplified 点 is a later abbreviation.

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

艹采菜

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.

Appears in

Dining & Restaurants

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