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一定 (yī dìng) — (adverb) surely, certainly, must; (adjective) fixed, given, certain

Definition

一定 as an adverb means 'surely, certainly' (a confident guess or promise); 一定 as an adjective means 'fixed, a certain' (e.g. a certain amount of time). Lighter than 必须 (must) and weaker than 肯定 (definitely, with stronger certainty).

adverb
surelycertainlymust
adjective
fixedgivencertain

Examples

  • 一定。
    Nǐ yī dìng yào zǎo yì diǎn lái.
    You must come a bit earlier.
  • 一定。
    Tā yī dìng huì chéng gōng de.
    He will surely succeed.
  • 一定。
    Zhè xū yào yī dìng de shí jiān cái néng zuò wán.
    This requires a certain amount of time to finish.

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.

一yīone
定dìngfixed

From 一定, 'one fixed', it means certain or fixed.

Characters in this word

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

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Open 一 →

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
宀宀mián
Sound part声符shēngfú
正
正zhèng定dìng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

定 is built from 宀 and 正, with 正 supplying the sound.

Open 定 →

Grammar

Appears in
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