桶

• Pinyin: tǒng
• Hanzi breakdown: 桶 = 木 (wood) + 甬 (phonetic)

Meaning

Bucket; barrel; pail; tub.

A cylindrical container for holding liquids or materials. Used as a measure word for contents of barrels. Appears in compounds like 水桶 (water bucket), 垃圾桶 (trash can), 油桶 (oil barrel).

Examples

1. 厨房里的垃圾桶满了，你去倒一下。 The kitchen trash can is full — go empty it.
2. 国际油价今天跌破每桶七十美元。 International oil prices fell below seventy dollars a barrel today.
3. 他提着两桶水从井边走过来，看起来挺吃力的。 He walked over from the well carrying two buckets of water — it looked pretty strenuous.

Usage Guide

Context: household, commodities, measurements

Tone: descriptive

Do Say

• 一桶水。(A bucket of water.)
• 垃圾桶。(Trash can.)

Don't Say

• 把方形容器叫'桶' (桶 specifically refers to cylindrical containers — for boxes, use 箱)

Origin & History

Pictophonetic character: 木 (wood radical) + 甬 (phonetic component). Originally wooden containers.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal