棺材 guāncai coffin
How to remember 棺材: 棺 coffin + 材 timber = coffin.
Characters
How it is used
- A coffin - 一口棺材 (yī kǒu guāncai) one coffin (measure word 口 or 具).
- Second syllable is neutral tone: guāncai. Appears in the blunt saying 不见棺材不落泪 (won't shed tears until seeing the coffin) = won't give up until faced with utter defeat.
- Concrete noun; sensitive/taboo topic, so used carefully in speech.