材料 cái liào
“(raw) material; data; (fig.) person who has the potential to do the job”
nounHSK 4 · 2021 list level 4
新HSK等级2025 HSK 3.0 syllabus level
材料 appears in the November 2025 exam syllabus in the following numbered entry. Levels refer to the listed reading and use, not every meaning.
- Entry 1061: 材料 cáiliào — Level 4; official annotation 4 (名). PDF page 106
Separate from the HSK 2.0 and 2021 list labels above. Compare the three lists.
用法How to use 材料
材料 means “material”: either a physical substance that something is made from, or the papers, texts, and information you use to study or prepare something. It is a noun, often preceded by a word naming the kind (建筑材料, 学习材料, 参考材料); for physical substances or documents, it is counted with 种 or 份 rather than 个. In the figurative pattern 是……的材料 (“has the potential to be...”), 个 is common, as in 他是个当老师的材料.
例句Example sentences
- 这座桥是用什么材料做的？zhè zuò qiáo shì yòng shén me cái liào zuò de?What material is this bridge made of?
- 老师给我们准备了很多学习材料。lǎo shī gěi wǒ men zhǔn bèi le hěn duō xué xí cái liào.The teacher prepared a lot of study materials for us.
- 这种材料太贵了，我们换一种吧。zhè zhǒng cái liào tài guì le, wǒ men huàn yì zhǒng ba.This kind of material is too expensive—let's switch to another one.