开车
kāichē
In Chinese, the English phrase 'driving' is expressed as 开车 (kāichē).
开车 is the most commonly used phrase in Mandarin Chinese to mean 'to drive'. The term 驾驶 can also be used to mean 'to operate' or 'to pilot'.
Meaning: action of operating a motor vehicle (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 开车 consists of the verb 开, which means 'to open' or 'to operate' and the noun 车, meaning 'car'.
Which one should you use?
While 开车 is the standard way to say 'to drive', you may encounter the term 驾驶汽车 which specifically means 'driving a car'. In this context, 汽车 means 'car'.
How does it change in a sentence?
To express the continuous action of driving, you can add the aspect particle 着 to form 开着车.
How do you pronounce it?
kāichē
Did you know?
- In modern internet slang, 开车 can mean 'to start a car' in a metaphorical sense, referring to a person sharing provocative or 'adult' content in a group chat.
- The word 车 originally referred to a chariot pulled by horses, yet it remains the core word for any wheeled vehicle today.
- The character 开 is a pictograph that originally depicted a hand lifting a latch to open a door.
Examples in context
- 你开车很好。You're great at driving.This sentence is useful for saying someone is good at driving using 开车.Tatoeba #4265129 by notabene, translation #13682149 by frpzzd
- 汤姆整天都在开车。Tom has been driving all day.This sentence is useful for describing someone who has been driving all day using 开车.Tatoeba #5685939 by verdastelo9604, translation #3424200 by CK
- 我的爱好是开车和弹吉他。My hobbies are driving and playing the guitar.This sentence is useful for listing driving as a hobby using 开车.Tatoeba #7768337 by jiangche, translation #8249384 by francaisr0wlet
- 明天我将驾驶汽车去开会。Tomorrow, I will drive a car to attend a meeting.
- 你周末有没有计划开车去远足？Do you have any plans to go hiking by car this weekend?
- 6 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing how to get to a restaurant.
- 浩然 Haoran我们怎么去那家餐厅？Wǒmen zěnme qù nà jiā cāntīng?How are we getting to that restaurant?
- 佳怡 Jiayi我不习惯开车，我们打车吧。Wǒ bù xíguàn kāichē, wǒmen dǎchē ba.I'm not used to driving, let's take a taxi.
- 浩然 Haoran没问题，我来叫车。Méi wèntí, wǒ lái jiàochē.No problem, I'll call the car.
- 佳怡 Jiayi谢谢你，浩然。Xièxiè nǐ, Hàorán.Thank you, Haoran.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
