地 de — (subor. part. adverbial); -ly; earth; ground; field; place
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.
Common words: 地方 (dì fāng)、地点 (dì diǎn)、地上 (dì shang)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "earth"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "earth", including 地 (de), 土 (tǔ), 尘 (chén), 壤 (rǎng). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "earth" covers 4 different Chinese characters — 地 (de), 土 (tǔ), 尘 (chén), 壤 (rǎng) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 4 characters do not share a sound — their readings span de, tǔ, chén, rǎng — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 地 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 地 de(subor. part. adverbial); -ly; earth; ground; field; placeUseful words: 地方, 地点
- 土 tǔearth; dustUseful words: 土地, 土豆
- 尘 chéndust; dirt; earthUseful words: 灰尘, 后尘
- 壤 rǎngsoil; earthUseful words: 土壤, 月壤
Common words for these 4 "earth" characters
Anchor each of these 4 characters in a word you can picture — start with 地 (de) — so "earth" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
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土地tǔ dìland; soil; territory土豆tǔ dòupotato; (Tw) peanut (本土běn tǔone's native country; native; local; metropolitan territory灰尘huī chéndust后尘hòu chénlit. trailing dust; fig. sb's footsteps; course in life前尘qián chénthe past; impurity contracted previously (in the sentient world) (Buddhism)土壤tǔ rǎngsoil
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 4 ways to say "earth".
土 tǔ — earth; dust
种子在土里慢慢发芽。Zhǒng zi zài tǔ lǐ màn màn fā yá.The seed slowly sprouts in the soil.
Common words: 土地 (tǔ dì)、土豆 (tǔ dòu)、本土 (běn tǔ)
尘 chén — dust; dirt; earth
桌子上落满了灰尘，该擦一擦了。Zhuō zi shàng luò mǎn le huī chén, gāi cā yi cā le.The table is covered with dust; it should be wiped.
Common words: 灰尘 (huī chén)、后尘 (hòu chén)、前尘 (qián chén)
壤 rǎng — soil; earth
肥沃的土壤适合种植各种庄稼。Féi wò de tǔ rǎng shì hé zhòng zhí gè zhǒng zhuāng jia.Fertile soil is suitable for growing all kinds of crops.
Common words: 土壤 (tǔ rǎng)、月壤 (yuè rǎng)、接壤 (jiē rǎng)
All 4 characters
Open 地、土、尘 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.