杯仔
bēizǎi
In Chinese, 'glass' (meaning a drinking vessel) can be expressed as 杯子, 杯仔 (bēizǎi) or җунзы.
Meaning: drinking vessel (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 杯仔 | bēizǎi | ||
| 杯子 | bēizi | /peɪ̯⁵⁵ d͡z̥ɹ̩²/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /puːi̯⁵⁵ t͡siː³⁵/ (Cantonese, Guangzhou, Sinological IPA, Standard Cantonese, Hong Kong) |
|
| 杯仔 | poe-á | /pue⁴⁴⁻³³ a⁵³/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Singapore, Sinological IPA, Taipei, General Taiwanese) /pue³³ a⁵⁵⁴/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Singapore, Sinological IPA, General Taiwanese) |
Hokkien |
The primary meaning refers to a drinking vessel such as a cup, chalice or goblet. You can use the term 玻璃杯 specifically to refer to a 'glass cup'. If you are referring to a window made of glass, the term 玻璃窗 is used.
Which one should you use?
The term 杯 can also be used to mean a cup or glass, often in more formal or poetic contexts or as a component of compound words. 杯仔 is the Hokkien dialect version.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
杯 is often used in formal or poetic settings. 杯仔 is a dialect-specific form.
Is it said differently in some regions?
杯仔 is the Hokkien dialect version of the word. җунзы is the Dungan form.
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun 杯子 does not change its form for pluralization. You must use a number or a quantifier like 些 to indicate more than one.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization for 杯仔 is poe-á.
Did you know?
- In a formal toast, the height at which you hold your 杯子 relative to the other person's glass indicates your social standing or humility.
- The idiom 杯水车薪 uses the word for 'cup' to create a metaphor where a single 'cup' of water is compared to a 'cart' of burning wood to show how useless an effort is.
- The character 杯 is used in the word for 'trophy' (奖杯), treating the prize as a symbolic 'cup' of victory.
Examples in context
- 杯子里有水。There is water in the glass.This sentence shows the use of 杯子 to describe the contents of a glass.Tatoeba #10961067 by xjjAstrus, translation #11252828 by weihaiping
- 这是谁的杯子？Whose glass is this?This sentence uses 杯子 to ask about ownership of a glass.Tatoeba #4885037 by musclegirlxyp, translation #3416475 by jackchak
- 我把杯子倒滿了。I filled the glass.This sentence demonstrates an action performed with the 杯子.Tatoeba #9135881 by xjjAstrus, translation #3541885 by adamtrousers
- 请给我一杯水Please give me a glass of water.
- 这个杯子很漂亮This glass is very beautiful.
- 请小心玻璃窗Please be careful with the glass window.
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Jun Jie and Zi Han are in the kitchen.
- 俊杰 Junjie梓涵，這裡有乾淨的杯仔嗎？Zǐhán, zhè-lí úú kàng-chì ê puê-á?Zi Han, are there any clean glasses here?
- 梓涵 Zihan有，在那個架子上。Úú, chāi na-ê kà-sióng.Yes, they are on that shelf.
- 俊杰 Junjie我想用這個杯仔喝水。Góa siáng iōng chit-ê puê-á hit chúi.I want to use this glass to drink water.
- 梓涵 Zihan好，快點拿吧。Hó, khài-tiám ná-pah.Okay, go ahead and take it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “glass” translations and entries 杯仔, 杯子, 杯仔, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
