脆 (cuì) — crisp, crunchy (for food); brittle, fragile (for materials); clear and sharp (for voice)
Definition
Crispy/crunchy for food, brittle for materials, and clear/sharp for a voice. 酥 is also 'crispy' but for flaky, crumbly textures; 清脆 pairs with sounds only.
adjective
crispcrunchy (for food)brittlefragile (for materials)clear and sharp (for voice)
Easily confused
Examples
- 脆，。Zhè ge píng guǒ hěn cuì, hěn hǎo chī.This apple is very crisp and delicious.
- 脆，。Zhè zhǒng sù liào wán jù tài cuì le, yì shuāi jiù suì.This kind of plastic toy is too brittle — it breaks as soon as you drop it.
- 脆，。Tā de shēng yīn hěn cuì, hěn yuǎn dōu néng tīng jiàn.Her voice is very crisp and can be heard from far away.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.
Sound part声符shēngfú
絕
絕jué脆cuì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
The left part ⺼, written as 肉, points to meat, and the right part 絕 gives the sound.
Appears in
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