Definition
馋 (chán) describes a strong desire for a specific food — a craving, not just general hunger (饥饿 jī'è). As an adjective it means 'gluttonous' (similar to 贪吃 tānchī), but 馋 focuses on longing for a particular taste, while 贪吃 emphasizes habitual overeating. As a verb, 馋 means 'to crave' a specific dish.
adjective
gluttonousgreedy for foodfond of eating
verb
to crave (a specific food)to have a hankering for
Easily confused
- 饿èlook-alikehungry
- 缠chánsound-aliketo wind around, to coil, to wrap
- 产chǎnsound-aliketo produce, to manufacture, to yield
- 掺chānsound-aliketo mix (one substance into another), to blend in, to adulterate (by adding something)
- 铲chǎnsound-alikespade; shovel (noun)
- 搀chānsound-aliketo take by the arm and assist (e.g., an elderly or injured person)
Examples
- 馋，。Tā tèbié chán, kànjiàn hǎochī de jiù zǒu bú dòng lù.He's such a foodie — when he sees good food he can't walk away.
- 馋，。Wǒ chán huǒguō le, jīnwǎn qù chī ba.I'm craving hotpot — let's go eat it tonight.
- 馋。Tā chán nà jiā diàn de dàngāo le.He's craving the cake from that shop.
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