Definition
岔 (chà) has a concrete noun sense 'fork in the road' and verb senses 'to branch off, change the subject, stagger'. As a noun, it contrasts with 分支 (fēn zhī), which refers to a branch of an organization or academic field. As a verb meaning to interrupt or change the subject, 岔 usually requires a complement like 开 (as in 岔开话题), while 打岔 (dǎ chà) is a standard verb for interrupting, and 插嘴 (chā zuǐ) means to butt in while someone is speaking.
noun
fork in the roadbifurcationbranch (of a road, river, mountain range)
verb
to branch offto divergeto change the subjectto stagger (times)
Easily confused
- 盆pénlook-alikebasin (container for liquids)
- 查chásound-aliketo look up (a word, information in a reference)
- 扮bànlook-aliketo dress up (as), to disguise oneself as
- 差chàsound-alike(adjective) poor, inferior, not up to standard
- 份fènlook-alike(classifier) for documents, newspapers, magazines, contracts, gifts, portions of food, etc.
- 茶chásound-aliketea (the drink)
- 盼pànlook-aliketo long for, to look forward to, to eagerly await
- 插chāsound-aliketo insert, to stick into
- 叉chāsound-alike(noun) fork, pitchfork, forked tool
Examples
- ，。Qiánmiàn yǒu yí gè chà kǒu, wǒmen zǒu zuǒbian nà tiáo lù.There's a fork ahead; let's take the left road.
- ，。Tā shuōhuà shí zǒng ài chà kāi huàtí, ràng rén gēn bú shàng.He always likes to change the subject when talking, making it hard to follow.
- ，。Wèile jiǎnshǎo yōngdǔ, gōngsī bǎ xiàbān shíjiān chà kāi le.To reduce congestion, the company staggered the off-work times.
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