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打下 (dǎ xià) — to conquer, overcome (a city, enemy); to shoot down (a plane, bird); to lay (a foundation)

Definition

A resultative verb meaning 'to take down' — used for conquering territory, shooting down aircraft, or laying foundations by achieving them. Always paired with a noun object specifying what was taken or established.

verb
to conquerovercome (a city, enemy)to shoot down (a plane, bird)to lay (a foundation)

Examples

  • 打下。
    Jūn duì dǎ xià le nà zuò chéng shì.
    The army conquered that city.
  • 打下。
    Tā men dǎ xià le dí rén de fēi jī.
    They shot down the enemy plane.
  • 打下。
    Gōng sī dǎ xià le jiān shí de jī chǔ.
    The company laid a solid foundation.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
补充bǔchōngVerb + complement

An action followed by its result or direction.

打dǎstrike
下xiàdown

打 'strike' and 下 'down' combine to show bringing something down or securing a place.

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng打dǎ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

打 uses 扌, a hand, to show an action done with the hand, and 丁 to give the sound.

Open 打 →

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

下 is drawn as a short horizontal line below a long curved line.

Open 下 →
Appears in
Military & Defense

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