熟

• Pinyin: shú
• Hanzi breakdown: 熟 = 享 (enjoy) + 灬 (fire), food cooked over fire until done

Meaning

Cooked; ripe; familiar. Describes food that is ready to eat, fruit that is ripe, or a person one knows well.

A versatile adjective with three main senses: (1) cooked/done (肉熟了 the meat is cooked), (2) ripe (水果熟了 the fruit is ripe), (3) familiar/well-acquainted (我们很熟 we know each other well). Also appears in compounds like 熟悉 (familiar), 成熟 (mature), and 熟人 (acquaintance). Pronounced shú in standard Mandarin; shóu is a colloquial variant.

Examples

1. 这个苹果还没有熟。 This apple is not ripe yet.
2. 肉已经煮熟了。 The meat is already cooked.
3. 我跟他很熟。 I know him very well.

Usage Guide

Context: food, cooking, relationships

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 这些水果熟了吗？(Are these fruits ripe?)
• 你对这个地方熟不熟？(Are you familiar with this place?)

Don't Say

• 不要混淆'我们很熟'和'食物煮熟了'的意思 (Be aware that 熟 has different senses — 我们很熟 means 'we know each other well,' while 煮熟了 means 'fully cooked'; context determines the meaning)

Origin & History

Top component 享 (enjoy) + bottom component 灬 (fire). Depicts food being cooked over fire until done, extending to 'ripe' and then metaphorically to 'familiar through repeated exposure.'

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal