差

• 拼音: chà
• 汉字拆解: 差 = compound character; top components relate to unevenness, bottom 工 (work) — a difference or gap

含义

To lack; to be short of; poor; bad. Commonly used to express time (差五分八点 = five to eight) and quality (成绩很差 = grades are poor).

In HSK 1 contexts, 差 is most often used for telling time: 差五分钟八点 (five minutes to eight). It also means poor in quality as an adjective or to be lacking something. When describing time, it appears before the amount lacking. For quality, it typically follows 很 or 太.

例句

1. 现在差五分八点。
2. 他的成绩很差。
3. 这个饭店的菜太差了。

用法指南

语境: time, evaluation, everyday

语气: neutral

正确说法

• 现在差十分九点。(It's ten minutes to nine now.)
• 这次考试我考得很差。(I did very poorly on this exam.)

错误说法

• 混淆'差不多八点'和'差五分八点'。(Don't confuse 差不多八点 (roughly eight) with 差五分八点 (five to eight) — they have different meanings)

起源与历史

The character originally combined components suggesting unevenness or discrepancy, evolving to mean lacking, different, or inferior in quality.

文化背景

世代: All ages

社会背景: Universal