差

chà

adjective HSK 1 #1,001

Meanings

Tā de zhōngwén hěn chà.

His Chinese is very poor.

Chà wǔ fēnzhōng dào sān diǎn.

It's five minutes to three o'clock.

Zhège dōngxi zhìliàng hěn chà.

This thing is of very poor quality.

usage

差 has multiple pronunciations: chà (bad; to lack), chā (difference), and chāi (to send on an errand, as in 出差 chūchāi, business trip).

grammar

For telling time, 差 means 'short of': 差十分三点 = 'ten minutes to three' (2:50).

差 chà