Chinese word

擦

Pronunciation

Pinyincā

Meaning

  • verbwipe

Example

他用布擦了窗户上的灰。tā yòng bù cā le chuāng hù shàng de huī

He wiped the dust off the window with a cloth.

Illustration for 擦 (wipe)

More examples

洗完碗后，她用布把盘子擦干了。xǐ wán wǎn hòu tā yòng bù bǎ pán zi cā gàn le

After washing the dishes, she wiped the plate dry with a cloth.

Core concept

Repeated friction passes over something, either clearing its surface or making close contact with it.

Common phrases

  • 擦干cā gàn

    wipe dry

  • 擦掉cā diào

    wipe off

Similar words

抹mǒ: To quickly sweep a hand or cloth in one direction over a surface to remove dirt or moisture.
刷shuā: To scrub a surface with a brush or rough cleaning pad to remove dirt.
拭shì: To lightly wipe away water or a thin layer of dirt with a cloth or piece of paper.

Definition in Chinese

用手、毛巾等通过来回摩擦把物体表面的灰尘、污渍或液体擦去。yòng shǒu máo jīn děng tōng guò lái huí mó cā bǎ wù tǐ biǎo miàn de huī chén wū zì huò yè tǐ cā qù

Word origin

擦 (cā, "wipe") is a phono-semantic character: its hand radical marks an action, while 察 (chá, "examine") mainly supplies the pronunciation.

Usage tips

  • The object often clarifies the intended action in conversation: a surface points to cleaning, while a body part points to repeated friction or contact.

Other meanings

  • rubverb

Opposites

  • 弄脏nòng zāngdirtyverb

Related words

  • 擦拭cā shìwipeverb
  • 擦亮cā liàngpolishverb

Word lists with this word