醋 (cù): vinegar

Measure Word

一瓶醋 píng

Meanings

1 vinegar
2 jealousy (figurative)

Characters

醋

cù

vinegar

Examples

吃饺子的时候要蘸醋。

Chī jiǎozi de shíhou yào zhàn cù.

You should dip dumplings in vinegar when eating them.

她看到他和别的女生说话就吃醋了。

Tā kàndào tā hé biéde nǚshēng shuōhuà jiù chīcù le.

She got jealous seeing him talk with another girl.

这道菜需要加一点醋。

Zhè dào cài xūyào jiā yīdiǎn cù.

This dish needs a little vinegar.

别吃醋了，她只是我的同事。

Bié chīcù le, tā zhǐshì wǒ de tóngshì.

Don't be jealous, she's just my colleague.

Tips

usage

吃醋 (chī cù, literally 'eat vinegar') means to be jealous, specifically in a romantic context. It's one of the most common Chinese idioms.

memory

The radical 酉 (yǒu) on the left relates to fermentation and alcohol — vinegar is fermented liquid, just like wine.

Components

radical

酉 yǒu

wine jar; tenth Earthly Branch

Left wine-jar radical — pictograph of a narrow-necked fermentation pot. Indexes 醋 in the fermented-liquid family with 酒 alcohol, 酱 sauce, 酸 sour, 酿 to brew. Vinegar is wine left to spoil, so the radical anchors 醋 in exactly the right semantic neighbourhood.

phonetic

昔 xī

former times; in the past

Right side 昔 supplies the sound — xī shifted to cù through Old-Chinese palatal alternation. Same phonetic in 错 wrong, 借 to lend, 措 to arrange, 醋. 昔 also adds quiet flavour: vinegar is wine that has aged into something else, so 'former wine' is a memorable mnemonic.