competition; match; to compete
HSK level
比赛 is written with 18 strokes (比: 4, 赛: 14). The animation replays automatically.
比赛 (bǐsài) means 'competition / match / contest' — any organized event where people or teams compete for a result.
It covers sports (足球比赛 soccer match), academic contests (作文比赛 essay contest), talent shows (唱歌比赛 singing contest), and even informal challenges (我们比赛 'let's have a contest'). 比赛 also works as a verb meaning 'to compete,' though Chinese often pairs it with a noun: 参加比赛 (take part in a competition).
Two contrasts with English: first, 比赛 is broader than 'match' or 'game' alone — it covers any structured competition with judges or scoring; second, when used as a verb, 比赛 by itself is fine (我们来比赛 'let's compete'), without naming the activity. The default measure word is 场 for an individual match, 次 for one round.
Character by character
Memory hook: 比 (compare) + 赛 (compete) — comparing performance through competing.
比赛 appears in 3 Fluentide podcast episodes at natural native speed — each with the full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
明天有一场足球比赛。
Míngtiān yǒu yì chǎng zúqiú bǐsài.
There's a soccer match tomorrow.
neutral
你想参加这个比赛吗？
Nǐ xiǎng cānjiā zhè ge bǐsài ma?
Do you want to take part in this competition?
spoken
我们班赢了比赛，大家都很高兴。
Wǒmen bān yíng le bǐsài, dàjiā dōu hěn gāoxìng.
Our class won the match — everyone was really happy.
spoken
比赛下午三点开始。
Bǐsài xiàwǔ sān diǎn kāishǐ.
The match starts at three in the afternoon.
neutral
竞赛 is more formal and is mostly used for academic or large-scale official contests — 数学竞赛 (math contest), 知识竞赛 (knowledge contest). 比赛 covers everything from casual to professional.
Single-character 赛 is used in compounds and headlines — 决赛 (final), 半决赛 (semifinal), 大赛 (major contest). On its own as a noun it is rare in modern spoken Chinese.
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