Meaning
采 means to pick, gather, or collect things, especially plants, flowers, or natural items. It originally depicted a hand picking something from a tree. In modern usage, it commonly refers to picking flowers, harvesting crops, or gathering materials.
Usage
This verb is most commonly used for gathering natural items like flowers (采花), tea leaves (采茶), or mushrooms (采蘑菇). It often appears in compounds and is slightly literary or formal compared to everyday speech. Native speakers frequently use it in contexts related to harvesting, collecting samples, or metaphorically 'adopting' ideas or methods.
Examples
- 01春天到了，我们去山上采野花吧。, .Spring has arrived, let's go pick wildflowers in the mountains.
- 02政府决定采取新的措施来保护环境。.The government has decided to adopt new measures to protect the environment.
Common collocations
- 采花to pick flowers
- 采茶to pick tea leaves
- 采购to purchase, to procure
- 采取to adopt (measures), to take (action)
Antonyms
Origin
The traditional form 採 shows a hand (扌) picking from a tree (采), directly depicting the action of gathering or plucking. The simplified form 采 is also an independent character meaning 'color' or 'brilliance' in other contexts.