Word

买 (mǎi) — Chinese word meaning

HSK 1

Meaning of 买

动 dòng verb

to buy

我想买一本书。

wǒ xiǎng mǎi yì běn shū

I want to buy a book.

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Word breakdown

买 mǎi — to buy

1 购买 gòu mǎi — to purchase HSK 4
- 购 to purchase (formal)
- 买 to buy
Example

我在网上购买了一台电脑。

wǒ zài wǎng shàng gòu mǎi le yì tái diàn nǎo

I purchased a computer online.
2 买卖 mǎi mai — business HSK 5
- 买 buy, purchase
- 卖 sell
Example

这个买卖不好做。

zhè ge mǎi mai bù hǎo zuò

This business is hard to do.
3 收买 shōu mǎi — to bribe HSK 7
- 收 to receive, to accept (illicitly)
- 买 to buy, to purchase (someone's loyalty)
Example

他们试图收买证人。

tā men shì tú shōu mǎi zhèng rén

They tried to bribe the witness.

Structure & writing

1 买 mǎi — to buy; to purchase (opposite of 卖)

买 is a component in 1 characters

HSK 1

卖 mài to sell; to exchange goods, skills, or labor for money (opposite of 买)

consists of

1.1 乛 zhé — hook/turning stroke component in Chinese characters

乛 is a component in 2 characters

HSK 1

买 mǎi to buy; to purchase (opposite of 卖) 候 hòu to wait; to await

1.2 头 tóu — head (of a person or animal)

Xpinyin

头 is a component in 2 characters

HSK 1

买 mǎi to buy; to purchase (opposite of 卖)

HSK 3

实 shí solid, filled completely with no gaps (opposite of "虚")

Stroke order