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瘵 — pronunciations, definitions, and tags
HanziPinyinEnglishTags
瘵zhàia wasting diseaseg, 16 strokes, radical 疒
瘵zhàifocus of tubercular infectionunknown, 16 strokes, radical 疒
zhài(zhai4) T4
  1. 1a wasting disease
  2. 2focus of tubercular infection
Listen to the audio pronunciation 3 times to gain XP
March 24, 2026

瘵zhài(zhai4)

瘵 (zhài) refers to a wasting disease, particularly one associated with tuberculosis or similar infections. It is used in medical contexts to describe conditions that cause significant weight loss and weakness due to chronic illness.

Strokes16Radical疒
Cultural Note

In traditional Chinese medicine, diseases like 瘵 are viewed not just as physical ailments but also as indicators of imbalance in the body's energy. This reflects a holistic approach to health prevalent in Chinese culture.

Memory Tip

Imagine a person who is 'wasting away' (瘵) due to a disease. The left part of the character, 疒 (sick), signifies illness, while the right part, 斋 (zhāi), can remind one of 'cleansing' or 'purifying' through diet, highlighting the physical decline caused by the disease.

Meanings of 瘵

zhài(zhai4)
1a wasting disease
2focus of tubercular infection
Exercise 1 of 2

Listen & Choose the Meaning

Choose the correct answer:

About 瘵

瘵Simplified
16Strokes
疒Radical
语素morpheme (morph.)Part of Speech
#—Frequency Rank

Podcast: 瘵

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Podcast: 瘵

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AI Study Notes for 瘵

Usage Notes

瘵 is a formal term often used in medical contexts. Learners might confuse it with similar-sounding words; ensure correct pronunciation and context. Common collocations include '瘵病' (wasting disease) and '肺瘵' (pulmonary tuberculosis).

HSK Study Tips

Although 瘵 is not part of the HSK vocabulary, understanding it can enhance your grasp of medical terminology in Mandarin. Focus on the radicals 疒 and how they relate to health-related words in your studies.

Common Mistakes

Learners often mispronounce 瘵 as zhāi instead of zhài. Additionally, confusing it with more common terms for illness can occur; for instance, using 瘵 when describing general sickness instead of specific wasting conditions.

AI-enhanced 2026-03-24

Pronunciation of 瘵

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Etymology of 瘵

Formation Typepictophonetic
六书 ClassificationPhono-semantic (形声字)~80-90% of characters
Memory Hint

sickness

Semantic (meaning)疒
+
Phonetic (sound)祭
Learn more about Phono-semantic (形声字) characters

Jason Etymology Detective

Case file: 瘵

  1. 1The meaning half疒 carries the sense.
  2. 2The sound half祭 is there for the reading, not the meaning.
  3. 3The giveawaysickness
  4. 4On the record aspictophonetic.

Every clue here comes from the character's recorded structure — nothing is guessed.

Want the full history of 瘵? Jason searches the paleographic record, weighs the competing accounts and judges the popular story.

Charged once for this character — everyone reads it afterwards.
Exercise 1 of 1

Character Formation Type

What type of character formation is 瘵?

Decomposition of 瘵

IDS Structure⿸疒祭
瘵Full Character
=
疒ne4
enclosing
祭ji4
inner
Exercise 1 of 2

Identify the Components

Which of these is a component of 瘵?

How to say a wasting disease in Chinese

“a wasting disease” in Chinese is瘵zhài

瘵 (zhài) refers to a wasting disease, particularly one associated with tuberculosis or similar infections. It is used in medical contexts to describe conditions that cause significant weight loss and weakness due to chronic illness.

When to use 瘵

瘵 is a formal term often used in medical contexts. Learners might confuse it with similar-sounding words; ensure correct pronunciation and context. Common collocations include '瘵病' (wasting disease) and '肺瘵' (pulmonary tuberculosis).

What learners get wrong

Learners often mispronounce 瘵 as zhāi instead of zhài. Additionally, confusing it with more common terms for illness can occur; for instance, using 瘵 when describing general sickness instead of specific wasting conditions.

Write 瘵

瘵

Practice writing 瘵 stroke by stroke. Watch the animation to learn the stroke order, then try writing it yourself.

Write correctly 3 times to earn XP

Word Family of 瘵

Words Containing This Character1
瘵zhàifocus of tubercular infection
Exercise 1 of 1

Compound Meaning

What does 瘵 mean?

Frequently Asked Questions about 瘵

瘵 specifically refers to a wasting disease associated with tuberculosis, emphasizing the severe physical decline it causes.

Jason Recommends

Not sure what to learn after 瘵?

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