(diān) — to weigh (in the hand), to heft

Definition

掂 (diān) means to weigh something by hand — lifting or balancing it to estimate its weight, not using a scale. The reduplicated pattern 掂一掂 is common in spoken Chinese.

verb
to weigh (in the hand)to heft

Examples

  • Tā diān le yí xià nà ge xī guā, jué de tài zhòng le.
    He hefted the watermelon and thought it was too heavy.
  • Nǐ diān yí xià zhè ge dài zi, kàn kàn yǒu duō chóng.
    Heft this bag and see how heavy it is.
  • Wǒ gāng diān le zhè píng shuǐ, dà gài liǎng jīn.
    I just hefted this bottle of water; it's about two pounds.
Appears in

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