小弟 (xiǎo dì) — younger brother; (humble self-address) me, your…

Definition

Literally 'younger brother,' used as a humble self-address among men (弟) to show modesty. In Taiwan colloquial speech it also means 'male waiter.'

noun

younger brother(humble self-address) meyour younger brother (used among male friends to show modesty)(Taiwan) male waiter

Measure word · 个

小弟，。
Tā shì wǒ xiǎo dì, jīn nián shí wǔ suì.
He is my younger brother, fifteen years old this year.
小弟，。
xiǎo dì Gāng lái zhè ge chéng shì, hái qǐng duō duō guān zhào.
Your humble younger brother has just arrived in this city; please look after me.
小弟。
Zhè jiā cān tīng de xiǎo dì fú wù hěn zhōu dào.
The waiters at this restaurant are very attentive.

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.

弟dìyounger brother

小 (little) and 弟 (younger brother) combine to mean a little or younger brother.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

The shape of 小 comes from three small dots, later elongated into its strokes; the apparent parts 八 and 丨 are a later way of seeing it.

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

弟 pictures a spear handle wrapped in a leather strap. The wrapping showed order, and that meaning was extended to a younger brother.

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