贴 tiē — to stick; to paste; to keep close to; to fit snugly; subsidize; allowance
他把一张照片贴在了墙上。Tā bǎ yì zhāng zhào piàn tiē zài le qiáng shàng.He pasted a photo on the wall.
Common words: 体贴 (tǐ tiē)、补贴 (bǔ tiē)、粘贴 (zhān tiē)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to stick"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to stick", including 贴 (tiē), 粘 (zhān / nián). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to stick" covers 2 different Chinese characters — 贴 (tiē), 粘 (zhān / nián) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 2 characters do not share a sound — their readings span tiē, zhān, nián — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 贴 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 贴 tiēto stick; to paste; to keep close to; to fit snugly; subsidize; allowanceUseful words: 体贴, 补贴
- 粘 zhān / niánsticky; to stick; pasteUseful words: 粘贴, 粘接
Common words for these 2 "to stick" characters
Anchor each of these 2 characters in a word you can picture — start with 贴 (tiē) — so "to stick" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
体贴tǐ tiēconsiderate (of other people's needs)补贴bǔ tiēto subsidize; subsidy; allowance; to supplement (one's salary etc)粘贴zhān tiēto stick; to affix; to adhere; to paste (as in "copy and paste")粘贴zhān tiēto stick; to affix; to adhere; to paste (as in "copy and paste")粘接zhān jiēto bond; to splice粘连nián liánto adhere; to stick together
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 2 ways to say "to stick".
粘 zhān / nián — sticky; to stick; paste
糖果化了，粘在了纸上。Táng guǒ huà le, zhān zài le zhǐ shàng.The candy melted and stuck to the paper.
Common words: 粘贴 (zhān tiē)、粘接 (zhān jiē)、粘连 (nián lián)
All 2 characters
Open 贴、粘 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.