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底

Mandarin · pinyin de#

(equivalent to 的 as possessive particle)

Mandarin · pinyin dǐ#

bottom; base
background; foundation
copy (of a manuscript or receipt etc) kept as a record
(suffix) end of a year or month
(math.) radix; base (abbr. for 底數 dǐ shù)

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底: dǐ · bottom, underneath, underside

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

5 · de5

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1character link5same-tone records

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 20 senses · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

dai2 · dik1

Cantonese word readings for 底. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

character · Etymology 1

bottom; underneath; underside
ground; background
ins and outs; actual situation
master copy
(Cantonese) copy kept as a record
end (of a year or month)
remnants; remains; leftovers
(Southern Min) inside
(mathematics) base (of triangle, logarithm, etc.)
(Cantonese) staple food as the base of a meal
(Cantonese, traditional Chinese medicine) physique; constitution (of a person)
(Hong Kong Cantonese) tendency in one's personality; leaning
(Cantonese) ground; foundation
(Cantonese) background (of a person); criminal record
(Cantonese) underpants (short for 底褲 /底裤 (dai² fu³)) (Classifier: 條／条 c)
(Cantonese) Classifier for pastry made or served in flat-shaped container.
(abbreviation, alt-of) short for 底細／底细 (dǐxì)

character · Etymology 2

(obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) possessive particle, equivalent to modern Mandarin 的 (de)

character · Etymology 3

(literary or Min) which; what

character · Etymology 4

(Hokkien) alternative form of 咧 (teh, “in the process of; currently”)

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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