柴油
cháiyóu
The English word "diesel" is 柴油 (cháiyóu) in Chinese.
The term 柴油 is used specifically for the liquid fuel used in diesel engines, rather than the engine itself.
Meaning: fuel (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of 柴 (chái), meaning firewood or fuel wood and 油 (yóu), meaning oil or liquid fuel.
How do you pronounce it?
cháiyóu
Did you know?
- The character 柴 is also used in the phrase 柴米油盐, which lists 'firewood, rice, oil and salt' to symbolize the basic necessities of daily life.
- People often distinguish between 柴油 and 汽油 (gasoline) by the characters' meanings, as 汽 refers to steam or gas and 柴 refers to solid wood.
- In Chinese, the term 油 is used broadly for anything from cooking oil and gasoline to shampoo and lotion.
Examples in context
- 这个取暖装置用柴油作为燃料。This heating equipment uses diesel as fuel.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use 柴油 as a fuel source in a sentence.Tatoeba #829651 by fucongcong, translation #7830225 by sharris123
- 火车使用柴油作为燃料。Trains use diesel as fuel.
- 柴油的价格最近上涨了。Cháiyóu de jiàgé zuìjìn shàngzhǎng le.The price of diesel has risen recently.
Example conversation
At a gas station, Wei is preparing to refuel a vehicle.
- 梓涵 Zihan你要加汽油还是柴油？Nǐ yào jiā qìyóu háishì cháiyóu?Do you want to add gasoline or diesel?
- 伟 Wei请给我加满柴油。Qǐng gěi wǒ jiāmǎn cháiyóu.Please fill me up with diesel.
- 梓涵 Zihan好的，伟，这就为你加。Hǎode, Wěi, zhè jiù wèi nǐ jiā.Okay, Wei, I will add it for you now.
- 伟 Wei谢谢你，梓涵。Xièxiè nǐ, Zǐhán.Thank you, Zihan.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “diesel” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
