嘀 meaning and stroke order
To whisper
How to write 嘀, stroke by stroke
14 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 嘀
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (onom.) sound of dripping water, a ticking clock etc
- used in 嘀咕[di2 gu5]
How 嘀 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Mouth.
口 gives the meaning and 啇 hints at the sound.
Radical: 口 (mouth), shared by 428 characters on this site.
How to remember 嘀
嘀 combines 口 (mouth), the meaning part, with 啇 (dí), which gives the sound. Picture a mouth making a small, quiet dí sound, like someone whispering or a clock ticking.
嘀 rarely appears alone. As dí it is used in 嘀咕 (dígu), meaning to mutter or to feel uneasy. As dī it imitates small repeated sounds, as in 嘀嗒 (dīdā), tick tock. Example: 他心里一直在嘀咕。(Tā xīnli yìzhí zài dígu.) He kept feeling uneasy about it.
Common mistake: Learners often use the wrong tone. It is dí in 嘀咕 but dī in 嘀嗒. Also do not confuse 嘀 with 滴 (dī, a drop of liquid), which has the water radical 氵 instead of 口.
Common words with 嘀
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 嘀咕 | dígu | to mutter; to feel apprehensive | |
| 嘀嗒 | dīdā | (onom.) tick tock |
嘀 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 嘀
How many strokes are in 嘀?
嘀 is written with 14 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 嘀 mean?
嘀 (dí) means to whisper. A common word with it is 嘀咕 (dígu), meaning "to mutter; to feel apprehensive".
How do you pronounce 嘀?
嘀 is pronounced dí, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 嘀?
The radical of 嘀 is 口, which carries the idea of "mouth". Dictionaries list 嘀 under this radical.
Does 嘀咕 mean whispering or worrying?
It can mean both. It can mean to mutter or talk quietly, and 心里嘀咕 (xīnli dígu) means to have doubts or feel uneasy inside.
What is the difference between 嘀嗒 and 滴答?
Both are read dīdā and imitate ticking or dripping sounds. 滴答 is often used for dripping water, while 嘀嗒 is often used for clocks, but in practice they are frequently interchangeable.