TongTong
Sign in

沙地 (shā dì) — sandy land, sandy ground; desert

Definition

noun
sandy landsandy grounddesert
Measure word · 块

Examples

  • 沙地。
    Zhè piàn shā dì bú shì hé zhǒng zhuāng jia.
    This sandy land is not suitable for growing crops.
  • 沙地。
    Hái zi men zài shā dì shàng wán shuǎ.
    The children are playing on the sandy ground.
  • 沙地。
    shā dì Dì qū de qì hòu fēi cháng gān zào.
    The climate in desert areas is very dry.

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.

沙shāsand
地dìground

沙 means sand and 地 means ground, sandy land.

Characters in this word

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

沙 puts 少 (dots) beside 水 (water), showing sand on a shoreline.

Open 沙 →

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

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.

Open 地 →
Appears in
Geography & Landforms

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.