醉

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intoxicated

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HSK 3.0: Level 5
Old HSK: Level 5
Strokes: 15
Radical: 酉 +8
Structure: Left–right 左右
Traditional: 醉
Common rank: #1,251
Unicode: U+9189

Sound it out + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

How 醉 is formed

Phono-semantic compound (形声字)

酉 meaning “wine” + 卒 sound ( zú )

Components 酉卒

How to remember it

drunk · Heisig RSH #2470

whiskey bottle + foot soldiers

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

Words with 醉

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
酒不醉人人自醉，色不迷人人自迷	jiǔ bù zuì rén rén zì zuì , sè bù mí rén rén zì mí	wine doesn't make men drunk: men get themselves intoxicated. Lust does not overpower men: …
麻醉学者	má zuì xué zhě	anaesthesiologist
不醉不归	bù zuì bù guī	lit. to not go home until drunk (idiom); fig. let's make a night of it!
全身麻醉	quán shēn má zuì	general anesthesia
春风深醉的晚上	Chūn fēng Shēn zuì de Wǎn shang	Intoxicating Spring Nights, 1924 short story by Yu Dafu 郁達夫\|郁达夫[Yu4 Da2 fu1]
心醉神迷	xīn zuì shén mí	ecstatic; enraptured
醉翁之意不在酒	zuì wēng zhī yì bù zài jiǔ	wine-lover's heart is not in the cup (idiom); a drinker not really interested in alcohol; …
醉心于	zuì xīn yú	to be infatuated with
麻醉学	má zuì xué	anesthesiology
局部麻醉剂	jú bù má zuì jì	local anesthetic
麻醉药品	má zuì yào pǐn	narcotic
一醉方休	yī zuì fāng xiū	to get thoroughly drunk (idiom); to get plastered
局部麻醉	jú bù má zuì	local anesthesia
醉生梦死	zuì shēng mèng sǐ	as if drunk or entranced (idiom); leading a befuddled existence; in a drunken stupor
醉人	zuì rén	intoxicating; fascinating
心醉	xīn zuì	enchanted; fascinated; charmed
醉心	zuì xīn	enthralled; fascinated
半麻醉	bàn má zuì	local anesthetic; anesthesia to half the body (as for a C-section birth)
今朝有酒今朝醉	jīn zhāo yǒu jiǔ jīn zhāo zuì	to live in the moment (idiom); to live every day as if it were one's last; to enjoy while …
麻醉师	má zuì shī	anaesthetist

Sound family

Characters sharing the sound component 卒 — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
卒 sound part	zú	soldier; servant; at last, finally
碎	suì	to break, to smash; broken, busted
翠	cuì	kingfisher; jade, emerald
粹	cuì	pure, unadulterated; essence
猝	cù	sudden, abrupt
萃	cuì	grassy; thick, dense, close; to gather, to assemble
瘁	cuì	tired, worn-out; sick; overworked
悴	cuì	to suffer; haggard, emaciated
淬	cuì	to soak, to dye; to temper, to change
晬	zuì	a child's first birthday
崒	zú	rocky peaks; lofty; dangerous
窣	sū	to emerge from a hole; rustling, whispering
綷	cuì	five-color silk
啐	cuì	to taste, to sip; to spit; the sound of sipping
谇	suì	to slander, to defame; to berate