Meaning
(subor. part. adverbial); -ly; earth; ground; field; place
Chinese: 土地、地方；读 de 时作结构助词。
Hear the Four Tones
The same syllable “de” becomes a different word in each tone. 地 is the 5. Tap any tone to hear a native voice and see its pitch shape.
Note: 地 itself is the neutral (light) tone — short and unstressed.
Stroke Order
Tap Animate to watch the strokes in order, or Practice to trace it yourself.
Common Words
- 地方dì fāngregion; regional (away from the central administration); local
- 地点dì diǎnplace; site; location; venue
- 地上dì shangon the ground; on the floor
- 地图dì túmap
- 地球dì qiúthe earth
Example Sentence
孩子们高兴地跑了出去。Hái zi men gāo xìng de pǎo le chū qù.The children ran out happily.
孩子们Hái zi menchildren高兴gāo xìnghappy地de(adverb marker)跑pǎo(of an animal) to paw (the了le(completed action)出去chū qùto go out。
Go deeper
Where this character comes from
The earth radical 土 (meaning) plus 也 (sound): the ground, the earth, land. Read de, it is also the adverb-forming particle.
A way to remember it
Earth (土) + the sound 也 — the ground.