假 jiǎ / jià — fake; false; artificial; to borrow; if; suppose
暑假我打算去旅行。Shǔ jià wǒ dǎ suàn qù lǚ xíng.I plan to travel during the summer holiday.
Common words: 放假 (fàng jià)、请假 (qǐng jià)、假期 (jià qī)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to borrow"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to borrow", including 假 (jiǎ / jià), 借 (jiè), 摘 (zhāi). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to borrow" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 假 (jiǎ / jià), 借 (jiè), 摘 (zhāi) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span jiǎ, jià, jiè, zhāi — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 假 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 假 jiǎ / jiàfake; false; artificial; to borrow; if; supposeUseful words: 放假, 请假
- 借 jièto lend; to borrow; excuse; pretext; by means ofUseful words: 借口, 凭借
- 摘 zhāito borrow; to pick (flowers; fruit); to pluck; to take; to selectUseful words: 摘要, 摘下
Common words for these 3 "to borrow" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 假 (jiǎ / jià) — so "to borrow" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
放假fàng jiàto have a holiday or vacation请假qǐng jiàto request leave of absence假期jià qīvacation借口jiè kǒuto use as an excuse; excuse; pretext凭借píng jièto rely on; to depend on; by means of; thanks to借助jiè zhùto draw support from; with the help of摘要zhāi yàosummary; abstract摘下zhāi xiàto take off; to remove (one's hat, a door from its hinges etc); to pick (a piece of fruit from a tree etc); (sports) to pick off (a rebound etc)摘由zhāi yóuhigh points (of a document); resume
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 "to borrow".
借 jiè — to lend; to borrow; excuse; pretext; by means of
我想向你借一本书。Wǒ xiǎng xiàng nǐ jiè yì běn shū.I would like to borrow a book from you.
Common words: 借口 (jiè kǒu)、凭借 (píng jiè)、借助 (jiè zhù)
摘 zhāi — to borrow; to pick (flowers; fruit); to pluck; to take; to select
秋天到了，果园里的人们忙着摘苹果。Qiū tiān dào le, guǒ yuán lǐ de rén men máng zhe zhāi píng guǒ.Autumn has come, and people in the orchard are busy picking apples.
Common words: 摘要 (zhāi yào)、摘下 (zhāi xià)、摘由 (zhāi yóu)
All 3 characters
Open 假、借、摘 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.