催

• Pinyin: cuī
• Hanzi breakdown: 催 = 亻(person) + 崔 (phonetic, pressing)

Meaning

To urge; to press; to hurry someone. A verb meaning to push someone to do something faster or to remind them persistently.

Very common in everyday speech. Can be neutral (reminding about deadlines) or slightly negative (nagging). Also appears in compounds like 催促 (urge), 催眠 (hypnotize), 催泪 (tear-inducing).

Examples

1. 老板一直催我交报告，搞得我压力很大。 The boss keeps pressing me to submit the report, which is putting a lot of pressure on me.
2. 别催了，我正在弄呢！ Stop rushing me — I'm working on it!
3. 她催着孩子们快点吃完早餐去上学。 She urged the children to quickly finish breakfast and go to school.

Usage Guide

Context: everyday, work, deadlines

Tone: urgent

Do Say

• 客户又在催货了。(The client is pressing for the goods again.)
• 别催我，我知道了。(Don't rush me; I know.)

Don't Say

• 我催他慢慢来 (Contradictory — 催 means to hurry, which contradicts 慢慢来)

Origin & History

Originally meant 'to pound/strike' (related to 摧), evolved to mean pressing or urging someone to act.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal