粗 (cū) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

粗

cū[cu1]Tone 1

thick, coarse, rough

HSK 4

Multiple Readings (多音字):

Guru Deep Dive

English · thick, coarse, rough

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:11

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (米) should be narrower to make room for the right side (且), ensuring the character doesn't look lopsided.

1. Meaning

thick or wide (for long objects); coarse (for granular materials); rough or crude (for manner or voice)

rough draft or summary (e.g., 粗略)careless or hasty (e.g., 粗心)

AdjectiveNeutral#physical properties#texture#personality#dimensions

Sample Usage

这根绳子太粗了。
Zhè gēn shéngzi tài cū le.
This rope is too thick.
他做事总是很粗心。
Tā zuòshì zǒngshì hěn cūxīn.
He is always very careless in doing things.

2. Sound

/[tsʰu⁵⁵]/Tone: 55

粗

cūcu1

¯(55)

=cū

Initial Consonant

Type: Aspirated Dental Sibilant

Sounds like: ts sound with a sharp puff of air

Aspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: Sharp burst of air through teeth! Tissue MUST flutter strongly.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip placed against the back of the lower front teeth, releasing a burst of air.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -u vowel group

Sounds like: oo sound as in 'boot'

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

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 stays flat and high, similar to an unchanging monotone hum of surprise like 'ah?' but pitched high.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the unvoiced aspirated 'c' [tsʰ] with the unaspirated 'z' [ts]. Make sure to blow air for 'c'.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Keep your voice at a high, flat pitch, like a sustained musical note at the top of your vocal range.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 11 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (米) should be narrower to make room for the right side (且), ensuring the character doesn't look lopsided.

4. Components

Radical 米 · Rice Radical (rice, grain)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 米 (Indicates grain or granular texture, which is coarse.)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 且 (original sound: jū / cū)

Rice (米) combined with a phonetic/structural clue (且) representing something stacked or sturdy, giving the sense of unrefined, bulky, or coarse grain.

米 Rice or grain, providing the semantic base of texture.
且 Provides the pronunciation and a sense of sturdiness or size.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

24· Phonetic Root: 且 (qiě)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Combined from the rice radical (米) denoting granular matter and 且 as a phonetic component that also contributed a sense of largeness or roughness.

Semantic Evolution: Originally referred to coarse grain, it gradually broadened to describe anything thick, rough, unrefined, or careless.

The character bridges the gap between physical grain texture and abstract traits like clumsy behavior or crude manners.

6. Sinosphere

🇻🇳

Sino-Vietnamese

thô

Mandarin Tone 1 corresponds roughly to ngang tone in Vietnamese.

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: ソ (so) / Kun: あら.い (ara.i)

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

추

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine holding a handful of unrefined, **coarse** grains of **rice** (米) that pile up **thick** and bulky (且) in your hand.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

组

zǔgroup, teamUses the silk radical (纟) instead of rice, meaning woven silk threads forming a group.

阻

zǔblock, obstructUses the mound radical (阝) indicating an obstruction or barrier on the road.

租

zūrent, leaseUses the grain radical (禾) related to grain tax and renting land.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

细(xì)

细 means thin or fine, whereas 粗 means thick or coarse. They are antonyms!

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

这根绳子太[___]了，不够细。

Clue: cū

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing 粗 (cū - thick/coarse) with its antonym 细 (xì - thin/fine) due to opposite meanings.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see 粗, what physical or behavioral qualities does it evoke?

Production: How do you write the adjective for 'thick/coarse' using the rice radical?

粗cūthick, coarse, rough

Speed:

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