植 zhí — to plant
植树节那天，我们种了很多小树。Zhí shù jié nà tiān, wǒ men zhòng le hěn duō xiǎo shù.On Arbor Day, we planted many little trees.
Common words: 植物 (zhí wù)、种植 (zhòng zhí)、移植 (yí zhí)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to plant"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to plant", including 植 (zhí), 栽 (zāi). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to plant" covers 2 different Chinese characters — 植 (zhí), 栽 (zāi) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 2 characters do not share a sound — their readings span zhí, zāi — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 植 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 植 zhíto plantUseful words: 植物, 种植
- 栽 zāito force; to stick in; to plantUseful words: 栽培, 地栽
Common words for these 2 "to plant" characters
Anchor each of these 2 characters in a word you can picture — start with 植 (zhí) — so "to plant" 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 plant".
栽 zāi — to force; to stick in; to plant
植树节那天，我们在山坡上栽了许多小树。Zhí shù jié nà tiān, wǒ men zài shān pō shàng zāi le xǔ duō xiǎo shù.On Arbor Day, we planted many little trees on the hillside.
Common words: 栽培 (zāi péi)、地栽 (dì zāi)、栽子 (zāi zi)
All 2 characters
Open 植、栽 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.