待 dāi / dài — stay; delay; wait; treat; deal with; need
他对每个人都很友好，待人真诚。Tā duì měi ge rén dōu hěn yǒu hǎo, dài rén zhēn chéng.He is friendly to everyone and treats people sincerely.
Common words: 等待 (děng dài)、对待 (duì dài)、接待 (jiē dài)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "stay"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "stay", including 待 (dāi / dài), 呆 (dāi), 呆 (dāi). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "stay" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 待 (dāi / dài), 呆 (dāi), 呆 (dāi) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span dāi, dài — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 待 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 待 dāi / dàistay; delay; wait; treat; deal with; needUseful words: 等待, 对待
- 呆 dāifoolish; stupid; no expression; stay; stay; stupidUseful words: 发呆, 痴呆
- 呆 dāifoolish; stupid; no expression; stay; stay; stupidUseful words: 发呆, 痴呆
Common words for these 3 "stay" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 待 (dāi / dài) — so "stay" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
等待děng dàito wait; to wait for对待duì dàito treat; treatment接待jiē dàito receive; to entertain; to host (guests, visitors or clients)发呆fā dāito stare blankly; to be stunned; to be lost in thought痴呆chī dāistupid; dull; (medicine) dementia目瞪口呆mù dèng kǒu dāi(idiom) dumbstruck; stupefied; stunned发呆fā dāito stare blankly; to be stunned; to be lost in thought痴呆chī dāistupid; dull; (medicine) dementia目瞪口呆mù dèng kǒu dāi(idiom) dumbstruck; stupefied; stunned
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 3 ways to say "stay".
呆 dāi — foolish; stupid; no expression; stay; stay; stupid
听到这个消息，他惊呆了。Tīng dào zhè ge xiāo xi, tā jīng dāi le.Hearing this news, he was stunned.
Common words: 发呆 (fā dāi)、痴呆 (chī dāi)、目瞪口呆 (mù dèng kǒu dāi)
呆 dāi — foolish; stupid; no expression; stay; stay; stupid
听到这个消息，他惊呆了。Tīng dào zhè ge xiāo xi, tā jīng dāi le.Hearing this news, he was stunned.
Common words: 发呆 (fā dāi)、痴呆 (chī dāi)、目瞪口呆 (mù dèng kǒu dāi)
All 3 characters
Open 待、呆、呆 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.