菜
菜 (cài) means “vegetable”. It is made of 艹 + 采 and has 11 strokes, and is an HSK 1 word in the current exam syllabus (2025).
Break 菜 into its parts
What 菜 is made of
- 艹 cǎo — grass
- 采 cǎi — to collect
- 爫 zhǎo — claws
- 木 mù — tree
- 十 — ten
- 八 bā — eight
Origin hint: 艹 gives the meaning, 采 gives the sound. (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
菜 stroke order
Example sentences
妈妈做的菜很好吃。Māma zuò de cài hěn hǎochī.The dishes Mom makes are delicious.
你想吃什么菜？Nǐ xiǎng chī shénme cài?What dish would you like?
Words with 菜
Also built with 艹
- 劳láoto labor
- 艺yìart
- 节jiémeasure word for classes
- 芒mángblade
- 花huāflower
- 芽yábud
- 苍cāngdark blue
- 苏sūto awaken
- 苗miáosprouts
- 苟gǒucareless
- 若ruòif
- 苦kǔbitter
Quick facts
| Pinyin | cài |
|---|---|
| Meaning | vegetable; dish |
| Strokes | 11 |
| Radical | 艸 (grass, #140) |
| Pattern | Top–bottom |
| HSK | HSK 1 (exam 2025) · HSK 1 (2021) · Old HSK 1 |
Questions about 菜
What does 菜 mean?
菜 (cài) means “vegetable; dish”.
How many strokes does 菜 have?
菜 has 11 strokes.
What is the radical of 菜?
The radical of 菜 is 艸 (cǎo, “grass”), Kangxi radical number 140.
What parts make up 菜?
菜 is made of 艹 (grass) and 采 (to collect).
Which HSK level is 菜?
菜 is in HSK 1 (exam 2025) and HSK 1 (2021) and Old HSK 1.
Learn 菜 with its group
It is part of HSK 1 (2021) · Group 41: a short group with quick checks and spaced repeats.