才

cái

adverbnounmeasure word★Beginner

formal

talent, ability

他有很大的才能。

He has great talent.

informal

only, just (emphasizing a small quantity or time)

我才吃了一点点。

I only ate a little bit.

formal

measure word for people (used after numbers to count people)

我们有三才学生。

We have three students.

Collocations

有才to have talent才能talent, ability才干ability, competence

才华横溢phrase

to be full of talent

才疏学浅phrase

to be lacking in talent and learning

'才' as a measure word is more common in classical Chinese and formal contexts. In everyday speech, '个' is more frequently used.

When '才' means 'only' or 'just,' it is an adverb and often appears after the verb. When it means 'talent' or 'ability,' it is a noun.

The character '才' originally depicted a person holding a tool, symbolizing skill or ability.

When used as a measure word, '才' is often used after numbers to count people, though it is less common than '个' in modern usage.

才

talent, ability

root

汉英词典