第二十九 (dì èr shí jiǔ) — twenty-ninth (ordinal number)

Definition

Ordinal 'twenty-ninth,' built from 第二 ('second') + 十九 ('nineteen'). Use the measure word 个, or follow the noun directly, just like other ordinal numbers.

numeral
twenty-ninth (ordinal number)

Examples

  • 第二十九。
    Jīn tiān shì tā de dì èr shí jiǔ gè shēng rì.
    Today is his twenty-ninth birthday.
  • 第二十九。
    Zhè běn shū de dì èr shí jiǔ zhāng hěn yǒu yì si.
    The twenty-ninth chapter of this book is very interesting.
  • 第二十九。
    Tā zài bǐ sài zhōng huò dé le dì èr shí jiǔ míng.
    He won twenty-ninth place in the competition.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
前缀qiánzhuìPrefix

A fixed syllable in front that adds a shade of meaning but carries none of its own.

第dìordinal
二十九twenty-nine
二èrtwo十shíten九jiǔnine

The 第 'ordinal' part combines with 二, 十, 九 to give 'twenty-ninth'.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
𥫗Written in full as竹zhúbamboo
Sound part声符shēngfú
弟
弟dì第dì
Same sound today

第 shows 𥫗, the bamboo strips once used for writing and sorting, with 弟 giving the sound.

Open 第 →

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

二 is drawn as two parallel strokes, where the number of strokes shows the amount.

Open 二 →

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

The early shape 十 was mostly a single vertical stroke, sometimes with a dot, and later gained a horizontal stroke to form a cross. For the number ten, it marked the next digit above one.

Open 十 →

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

The shape comes from a stylized hand bent at the wrist, with the lower-right hook showing the bend. Later, it was taken to show a tightened fist bumping up to ten, giving the number nine.

Open 九 →

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