敌情 (dí qíng) — enemy situation (military intelligence about the enemy)

Definition

敌情 refers to intelligence about the enemy's situation — troop movements, strength, plans. Often used in military or strategic contexts, paired with verbs like 掌握 or 收集.

noun
enemy situation (military intelligence about the enemy)

Examples

  • 敌情。
    Zhēn chá bīng zhèng zài shōu jí dí qíng.
    The scouts are gathering enemy intelligence.
  • 敌情。
    Wǒ men bì xū jí shí zhǎng wò dí qíng.
    We must grasp the enemy situation in time.
  • 敌情，。
    Gēn jù dí qíng, tā men jué dìng gǎi biàn zhàn shù.
    Based on the enemy situation, they decided to change tactics.

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.

敌díenemy
情qíngcircumstances

敌 gives the sense of the enemy, and 情 gives the sense of circumstances, so together they name enemy circumstances.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 敵; 敌 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
攴攴pūto tap; to hit
Sound part声符shēngfú
啻
啻chì敵dí
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 敵 pairs 啻 as a sound part with 攴, a part for tapping or hitting.

Open 敌 →

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
青
青qīng情qíng
Same sound today

情 shows 心 (heart) beside 青, which gives the sound. The heart part points to feelings and inner states.

Open 情 →

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