酒 (jiǔ) — alcoholic beverage; wine; liquor
Definition
General word for any alcoholic drink — 葡萄酒 is specifically grape wine, 白酒 is the strong Chinese grain liquor, and 酒水 in formal/event settings means beverages.
noun
alcoholic beveragewineliquor
Measure word · 杯, 瓶, 罐, 桶, 缸
Examples
- 酒，。Tā hē le yì bēi jiǔ, rán hòu huí jiā le.He drank a glass of wine and then went home.
- 酒。Wǒ mǎi le yì píng jiǔ sòng gěi tā.I bought a bottle of wine to give to him.
- 酒？Nǐ xǐ huan hē shén me jiǔ?What kind of alcoholic drink do you like?
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
酉
酉yǒu酒jiǔ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
酒 pairs 酉, the original picture for this word, with 水 (water), added later to distinguish it.
Appears in
Browse more HSK 3 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.