How to Write 猜 (cāi) — Meaning “Guess”

Picture a dog (犭) staring at a strange blue object (青) and trying to figure out what it is, so it has to 'guess'. Another trick is to remember that a dog's instincts are like guessing—the animal is not sure, just like when you make a guess.

Write the left radical 犭 first: a left-falling stroke, then a curved hook, then another left-falling stroke. The right side 青 has a tall, balanced shape with a top part like three horizontal lines and a bottom part like 月 (moon). A common mistake is to make the right side too narrow or forget the small horizontal strokes inside the 月 part.

While all three share the dog radical, 猜 has the right side 青 and means 'guess', 狠 has the right side 艮 and means 'cruel' or 'very', and 狊 is a rare character with the right side 目 (eye) meaning 'to stare'. The visual difference is the right component, and the meanings are unrelated.

猜 is used in everyday language for guessing games, such as 猜谜 (guess riddles), and in speculation like 猜测 (conjecture). It's also common in casual speech, for example saying '你猜' (you guess) to challenge someone. During Chinese New Year, 猜灯谜 (guess lantern riddles) is a popular tradition.

Common words containing 猜 include: 猜想 (cāi xiǎng) — Suppose / Conjecture; 猜测 (cāi cè) — to guess; conjecture; 猜谜 (cāi mí) — to guess a riddle.