汽車 / 汽车
qìchē
The English word car can be translated into Chinese as 汽車 / 汽车 (qìchē). Wiktionary also lists 車 / 车 (chē).
Meaning: automobile, a vehicle steered by a driver (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 汽車 / 汽车 | qìchē | |
| 車 / 车 | chē | |
| 自動車 / 自动车 | chū-tōng-chhia | Hokkien |
| 風車 / 风车 | hong-chhia | Hokkien |
| 汽車 / 汽车 | khì-chhia | Hokkien |
The term refers to an automobile, a vehicle steered by a driver.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 車 / 车 refers to a vehicle or wheeled transport in general, often used as a component in more specific words for cars.
Which one should you use?
In Hokkien, 風車 / 风车 literally means 'wind vehicle' and is used for a windmill, not an automobile.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mainland China, the term 小汽车 is used to mean small car. The term машинэ, чичә, машынэ and машнэ are forms used in Dungan.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation for 汽車 / 汽车 is qìchē.
Did you know?
- The word 汽车 (qìchē) literally translates to 'steam vehicle', a relic from the era when early automobiles were powered by steam engines.
- In ancient China, the number of horses pulling a 車 / 车 strictly indicated the social rank of the owner.
- Dungan is a variety of Chinese spoken by the Hui people in Central Asia, which explains why its words for 'car' like машинэ sound like the Russian 'mashina'.
Examples in context
- 我今天坐汽车去上班。I'm taking a car to work today.
- 这辆汽车是新的。This car is new.
- 他在一家汽车公司工作。He works at a car company.
- 我今天开车去超市了。I drove a car to the supermarket today.
- 这辆车很漂亮。This car is beautiful.
- 他最近买了一辆新车。He recently bought a new car.
- 这是我新买的小汽车。This is the small car I just bought.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “car” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
