材料 (cáiliào) — material; data

HSK 3 | noun | physical material or written data and information

材料 (cáiliào)

材料 can refer to physical materials used to make something, or written materials such as data, documents, or reference information.

Meanings

  1. [noun] material; ingredient; substance used to make something
  2. [noun] data; written materials; documents; information

Example Sentences

这道菜需要很多材料。 Zhè dào cài xūyào hěn duō cáiliào. This dish requires many ingredients.

请把相关材料发给我。 Qǐng bǎ xiāngguān cáiliào fā gěi wǒ. Please send me the relevant materials.

建造这栋楼用了很多高质量的材料。 Jiànzào zhè dòng lóu yòng le hěn duō gāo zhìliàng de cáiliào. Many high-quality materials were used to build this building.

老师给我们准备了大量的学习材料。 Lǎoshī gěi wǒmen zhǔnbèi le dàliàng de xuéxí cáiliào. The teacher prepared a large amount of study materials for us.

Collocations

Collocation Meaning
准备材料 to prepare materials
学习材料 study materials
参考材料 reference materials
建筑材料 building materials
原材料 raw materials

Memory Hook

材 (timber/talent) + 料 (ingredient/material): the raw timber and ingredients that make up everything you need.