菜

• Pinyin: cài
• Hanzi breakdown: 菜 = 艹 (plant radical) + 采 (pick, phonetic) — plants picked for eating

Meaning

Dish; vegetable; food. Refers to cooked dishes or raw vegetables.

Has two main uses: (1) vegetables as ingredients (买菜, to buy groceries/vegetables) and (2) prepared dishes at a meal (这个菜很好吃, this dish is delicious). In restaurants, 点菜 means 'to order food'. Very central to Chinese food culture.

Examples

1. 今天的菜很好吃。 Today's dishes are delicious.
2. 妈妈去买菜了。 Mom went to buy groceries.
3. 你想吃什么菜？ What dish would you like to eat?

Usage Guide

Context: food, everyday

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 这个菜是谁做的？(Who made this dish?)
• 我们去买菜吧。(Let's go buy groceries.)

Don't Say

• 吃菜 to mean eating a meal (吃菜 specifically means eating the dishes/vegetables — use 吃饭 for eating a meal in general)

Origin & History

Composed of 艹 (grass/plant radical) and 采 (to pick, phonetic). The original meaning was 'plants to be picked for eating' — vegetables and edible greens.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal