使 shǐ — to make; to cause; to enable; to use; to employ; messenger
音乐使人放松。Yīn yuè shǐ rén fàng sōng.Music makes people relax.
Common words: 使用 (shǐ yòng)、大使馆 (dà shǐ guǎn)、即使 (jí shǐ)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to cause"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to cause", including 使 (shǐ), 致 (zhì). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to cause" covers 2 different Chinese characters — 使 (shǐ), 致 (zhì) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 2 characters do not share a sound — their readings span shǐ, zhì — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 使 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 使 shǐto make; to cause; to enable; to use; to employ; messengerUseful words: 使用, 大使馆
- 致 zhìfine and close; to send; to devote; to deliver; to cause; to conveyUseful words: 导致, 一致
Common words for these 2 "to cause" characters
Anchor each of these 2 characters in a word you can picture — start with 使 (shǐ) — so "to cause" 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 "to cause".
致 zhì — fine and close; to send; to devote; to deliver; to cause; to convey
大雪导致很多航班取消。Dà xuě dǎo zhì hěn duō háng bān qǔ xiāo.The heavy snow caused many flights to be canceled.
Common words: 导致 (dǎo zhì)、一致 (yī zhì)、细致 (xì zhì)
All 2 characters
Open 使、致 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.