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底层 (dǐ céng) — ground floor (of a building); bottom (of a pile or stack); lowest rung (of society)

Definition

底层 emphasizes the 'layer/stratum' sense — the lowest layer of a stack, building, or social structure. 底子 is more about the foundation/base supporting what's above; 基层 refers to the grassroots operating level of an organization.

noun
ground floor (of a building)bottom (of a pile or stack)lowest rung (of society)

Examples

  • 底层。
    Zhè ge chāo shì de dǐ céng mài shū cài hé shuǐ guǒ.
    The ground floor of this supermarket sells vegetables and fruit.
  • 底层。
    Xiāng zi de dǐ céng fàng zhe jǐ běn jiù shū.
    A few old books are placed at the bottom of the box.
  • 底层。
    Xǔ duō yí mín dōu shēng huó zài shè huì de dǐ céng.
    Many immigrants live at the bottom of society.

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.

底dǐbottom
层cénglayer

底 points to the bottom, and 层 gives a layer: the bottom layer.

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
广广guǎngbuilding
Sound part声符shēngfú
氐
氐dī底dǐ
Same sound today

底 pairs 广 (building) with 氐, pointing to the bottom or foundation of a building. Some read 氐 as a bowing figure or tree root, adding a sense of 'down'.

Open 底 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 層; 层 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
尸尸shī
Sound part声符shēngfú
曾
曾céng層céng
Same sound today

The traditional form 層 uses 尸 for the meaning and 曾 for the sound; the simplified 层 is a later abbreviation.

Open 层 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Buildings & StructuresSociety & Public Life

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