螃蟹

pángxiè

HSK 7

Character Breakdown

Meaning and Usage

"螃蟹" refers to the crustacean known as crab. It is commonly used in everyday conversation when talking about seafood, nature, or food dishes.

Common Contexts

People often mention 螃蟹 when discussing beach activities like catching crabs or when ordering seafood dishes. It also appears in descriptions of animal behavior, such as their distinctive sideways walking.

Collocations and Patterns

  • 螃蟹 (crab meat): used when talking about the edible part.
  • 螃蟹 (catch crabs): common phrase for the activity.
  • 螃蟹 (crab stir-fried rice cakes): a popular dish.

Usage Tips

When using 螃蟹, note that it is a noun and usually appears as the subject or object in sentences. It is often paired with verbs like (catch), (eat), or descriptions of movement like (walk sideways). Avoid confusing 螃蟹 with other seafood like (lobster).

Example Sentences

我们去海边抓螃蟹吧,夏天吃螃蟹很美味。

Wǒmen qù hǎibiān zhuā pángxiè ba, xiàtiān chī pángxiè hěn měiwèi.

Let's go catch crabs at the beach; eating crabs in summer is delicious.

螃蟹横着走,这是它们的特点。

Pángxiè héngzhe zǒu, zhè shì tāmen de tèdiǎn.

Crabs walk sideways; this is their characteristic.

这家餐厅的螃蟹炒年糕非常有名。

Zhè jiā cāntīng de pángxiè chǎo niángāo fēicháng yǒumíng.

The crab stir-fried rice cakes at this restaurant are very famous.