Definitions

zào (noun) kitchen stove; cooking stove

Etymology

A clay  oven 

About

The character 灶 represents a kitchen stove or furnace, simplified from the complex traditional form 竈, which incorporated elements suggesting a cavity and a toad-like creature linked to earthen hearths. Its modern structure is an intuitive compound: the fire radical 火 on the left and the earth radical 土 on the right, reflecting the construction of traditional rural stoves made from clay or earth with a fire within. It specifically denotes the physical cooking apparatus rather than the broader concept of a kitchen or cooking. The character also holds cultural significance through its association with the Kitchen God in folklore, a deity said to reside in the family stove to observe household conduct.

Etymology Hide

Bronze etymology image
Bronze Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Late Spring and Autumn (~500 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

厨房里有一个台。

Chúfáng lǐ yǒu yīgè zàotái.

There is a stove in the kitchen.

煤气点火很方便。

Méiqì zào diǎnhuǒ hěn fāngbiàn.

The gas stove is very convenient for lighting.

奶奶用旧烧水。

Nǎinai yòng jiù zào shāo shuǐ.

Grandma uses the old stove to boil water.

上的锅已经热了。

Zào shàng de guō yǐjīng rè le.

The pot on the stove is already hot.

清洁具时要小心。

Qīngjié zàojù shí yào xiǎoxīn.

Be careful when cleaning the stove.

现代厨房大多用电

Xiàndài chúfáng dàduō yòng diàn zào.

Modern kitchens mostly use electric stoves.

神是厨房的传统信仰。

Zàoshén shì chúfáng de chuántǒng xìnyǎng.

The kitchen god is a traditional belief in the kitchen.

他们正在安装新的嵌入式具。

Tāmen zhèngzài ānzhuāng xīn de qiànrù shì zàojù.

They are installing a new built-in stove.