车祸

• Pinyin: chē huò
• Hanzi breakdown: 车 = pictograph of a vehicle; 祸 = 礻 (spirit) + 咼 (phonetic)

Meaning

Car accident; traffic accident. A collision or crash involving vehicles.

The general term for any motor vehicle accident. Can range from minor fender benders to fatal crashes. Very common in news and everyday conversation.

Examples

1. 他在车祸中受了重伤。 He was seriously injured in the car accident.
2. 这个路口经常发生车祸，要小心。 This intersection often has accidents; be careful.
3. 车祸现场已经被警察封锁了。 The accident scene has already been cordoned off by police.

Usage Guide

Context: traffic, news, everyday

Tone: serious

Do Say

• 昨天高速上发生了一起严重车祸。(A serious car accident happened on the highway yesterday.)
• 遵守交通规则可以减少车祸发生。(Obeying traffic rules can reduce car accidents.)

Don't Say

• 我的自行车出车祸了 (车祸 typically refers to motor vehicle accidents — for bicycle accidents, you can say 出了事故 or be more specific)

Origin & History

Compound of 车 (vehicle) and 祸 (disaster, misfortune). 祸 contains 示 (altar) suggesting misfortune from the gods.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal