TongTong
Sign in

出生地 (chū shēng dì) — birthplace

Definition

noun
birthplace

Examples

  • 出生地。
    Tā de chū shēng dì shì yí gè xiǎo chéng shì.
    His birthplace is a small city.
  • 出生地。
    Wǒ jīn nián xià tiān dǎ suàn qù chū shēng dì kàn kàn.
    I plan to visit my birthplace this summer.
  • 出生地。
    Zhè ge chū shēng dì xiàn zài yǐ jīng biàn chéng le lǚ yóu jǐng diǎn.
    This birthplace has now become a tourist attraction.

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.

出生be born
出chūcome out生shēngbirth
动宾Verb + object
地dìplace

出生 (be born) and 地 (place) combine to mean the place where someone is born.

Characters in this word

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

出 combines 止 (foot) and 凵 (cave) to show a foot stepping out of a cave.

Open 出 →

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

生 shows 屮 (a bud) above 一 (the ground), drawing a sprout coming up from the earth.

Open 生 →

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
Life Stages & Age

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