渣 (zhā) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

渣

zhā[zha1]Tone 1

slag, dregs, scum

HSK 7

Guru Deep Dive

English · slag, dregs, scum

Cached lesson

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:12

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (氵) takes up about one-third of the width, while the right phonetic component (查) takes up the remaining two-thirds, keeping both sides vertically balanced.

1. Meaning

slag, dregs, residue left from smelting or filtering

sedimentscumscraps or garbage (colloquial, e.g. 渣男 bad guy / scum)

Nounneutral (also used in modern slang)#materials#chemistry#colloquial insults

Sample Usage

炼 Tl 时会产生很多矿渣。
liàn tǒng shí huì chǎnshēng hěn duō kuàngzhā.
Smelting copper produces a lot of mineral slag.
他是个典型的渣男。
tā shì gè diǎnxíng de zhānán.
He is a typical jerk/scumbag.

2. Sound

/[ʈʂa˥]/Tone: 55

渣

zhāzha1

¯(55)

=zhā

Build the syllable

Step-by-step blending

zha

Tone mark placement: Tone mark sits on "a" per main-vowel priority (a > e > o; in -iu/-ui the mark takes the second vowel).

Initial Consonant

Type: Unaspirated Retroflex

Sounds like: j/dr retroflex sound

UnaspiratedRetroflex

Airflow Tactile Test: No burst of air. Tongue curled up. Tissue stays still.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip curled back near hard palate

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -a vowel group

Sounds like: rhymes with father/jar 'ah'

Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ah'.

Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.

Tone

T1 (55)

5 → 5 (55)

1st Tone (High-Flat)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 1 is sung at a flat, unwavering high pitch, exactly like a musical note held steady without bending.

👂

Listening trap: Do not confuse 'zhā' with 'zhǎ' or 'zhà'. The first tone is high and level, never dipping or falling abruptly.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Keep your hand completely flat and steady at eye level, matching the high level 55 pitch.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 12 strokes

4. Components

Radical 氵 · Water Radical (water, liquids, or liquid-related processes)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 氵 (indicates wetness, liquid waste, or dregs found in liquids or brewing)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 查 (original sound: chá / zhā)

Water (氵) combines with to inspect or examine (查) to describe the unwanted residue left behind when liquids are filtered or examined.

氵 water/liquid element
查 phonetic clue providing the 'zhā' sound

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

9· Phonetic Root: 查 (zhā)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Combined from the water/liquid radical (氵) and the phonetic component 查 (chá), originally denoting sediment or dregs settling in liquids.

Semantic Evolution: Expanded from literal industrial slag and tea dregs to general refuse, and further extended into modern internet slang for morally corrupt or 'trashy' people (e.g. 渣男).

The character bridges ancient metallurgical terms for smelting waste with modern slang.

6. Sinosphere

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

When you use liquid (氵) to investigate or inspect (查) the bottom of a barrel, all you find is heavy industrial slag and dregs (zhā).

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

查

zhāsurname Zha; variant of 楂[zha1]Phonetic Core (声旁)

喳

chāused in 喳喳[cha1 cha1] and 喳喳[cha1 cha5]+ 口 (mouth)

揸

zhāto stretch fingers out+ 扌 (hand)

楂

cháfell trees; raft+ 木 (tree)

Explore this family →

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

查(chá)

查 lacks the water radical (氵) and usually carries a rising tone (2nd tone).

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

喝完中药后，碗底留下了一层厚厚的药[___]。

Clue: zhā

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the tone with zhǎ (3rd tone) or miswriting the right-hand side component 查 as other similarly shaped characters.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What does the character 渣 mean when combined with the water radical and phonetic 查?

Production: How do you write the Chinese character for 'slag' or 'dregs' (zhā)?

渣zhāslag, dregs, scum

Speed:

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