About
The character 莱 (traditional: 萊) is a phono-semantic compound. Its semantic radical 艹 (grass/plant) at the top classifies it within the plant category, while the phonetic component 來 (simplified as 来) at the bottom indicates its pronunciation. Historically, 莱 referred to a specific wild herbaceous plant, often identified as goosefoot, which commonly grew in uncultivated fields. Over time, its meaning broadened to include such overgrown fields themselves. In modern simplified Chinese, the character retains the 艹 radical but uses the simplified phonetic element 来. Today, 莱 is most frequently seen in phonetic transcriptions of foreign names and places, rather than in its original botanical sense.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
这是著名的莱茵河。
莱昂是我的好朋友。
我们去蓬莱旅游吧。
莱卡相机非常昂贵。
莱芜的经济发展很快。
莱茵河是欧洲的重要河流。
我听说蓬莱是个美丽的地方。
莱昂纳多主演了许多精彩电影。