Chinese Character: 棵
1. Character Basics
Radical: 木 (wood radical)
Stroke Count: 12
Stroke Order:
2. Pronunciation
Pinyin: kē
3. Meaning
English meaning: classifier for trees, plants, etc.
4. Common Words
- 一棵树 (yī kē shù) - a tree
- 两棵草 (liǎng kē cǎo) - two blades of grass
- 三棵白菜 (sān kē bái cài) - three cabbages
- 几棵树 (jǐ kē shù) - several trees
- 每棵树 (měi kē shù) - every tree
5. Grammar & Usage
Usage notes:
- 作为量词，主要用于计量树木、植物等
- 结构：数词 + 棵 + 植物名称
- 不能用于计量细长的植物，如草通常用"株"
6. Cultural Background
In Chinese, classifiers (measure words) are essential for counting nouns. The classifier "棵" is specifically used for plants with stems, reflecting the language's precision in describing the natural world. This linguistic feature demonstrates how Chinese categorizes and conceptualizes different objects.
7. Example Sentence
Chinese: 我们在院子里种了五棵苹果树。
Pinyin: Wǒmen zài yuànzi lǐ zhòng le wǔ kē píngguǒshù.
English: We planted five apple trees in the yard.
8. Memory Tips
Mnemonic: The character "棵" has "木" (wood) on the left and "果" (fruit) on the right. Imagine a tree (木) bearing fruit (果), and we count trees with "棵".