地下水 (dì xià shuǐ) — groundwater | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Water held underground in soil and rock. The first character 地下 means 'underground'; 地下水 is a compound noun for groundwater as a natural resource.

noun

groundwater

Examples

地下水。
dì xià shuǐ Shì zhòng yào de shuǐ zī yuán.
Groundwater is an important water resource.
地下水。
Bǎo hù dì xià shuǐ bú bèi wū rǎn shì wǒ men de zé rèn.
It is our responsibility to protect groundwater from pollution.
，地下水。
Zài gān hàn dì qū, dì xià shuǐ shì zhǔ yào de yǐn yòng shuǐ lái yuán.
In arid regions, groundwater is the main source of drinking water.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

地下underground

地dìground下xiàbelow

偏正Modifier + head

Water (水) found 地下 (below the ground) is groundwater.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

土也地

Meaning part形符xíngfú

土土tǔearth

Sound part声符shēngfú

也

也yě地dì

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

地 is built from 土 (earth) and 也, which gives its sound.

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

下 is drawn as a short horizontal line below a long curved line.

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

水 is a simple drawing of water flowing.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Materials & Substances

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