彩 cǎi — (bright) color; variety; applause; applaud; (lottery) prize; colored
雨后的天空出现了一道彩虹。Yǔ hòu de tiān kōng chū xiàn le yí dào cǎi hóng.A rainbow appeared in the sky after the rain.
Common words: 精彩 (jīng cǎi)、彩色 (cǎi sè)、色彩 (sè cǎi)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "prize"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "prize", including 彩 (cǎi), 奖 (jiǎng). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "prize" covers 2 different Chinese characters — 彩 (cǎi), 奖 (jiǎng) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 2 characters do not share a sound — their readings span cǎi, jiǎng — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 彩 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 彩 cǎi(bright) color; variety; applause; applaud; (lottery) prize; coloredUseful words: 精彩, 彩色
- 奖 jiǎngprize; award; encouragementUseful words: 奖金, 获奖
Common words for these 2 "prize" characters
Anchor each of these 2 characters in a word you can picture — start with 彩 (cǎi) — so "prize" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 2 ways to say "prize".
奖 jiǎng — prize; award; encouragement
他在比赛中得了一等奖。Tā zài bǐ sài zhōng dé le yī děng jiǎng.He won first prize in the competition.
Common words: 奖金 (jiǎng jīn)、获奖 (huò jiǎng)、奖学金 (jiǎng xué jīn)
All 2 characters
Open 彩、奖 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.