梯 meaning and stroke order
Ladder, steps, stairs
How to write 梯, stroke by stroke
11 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
Meaning of 梯
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (bound form) ladder; stairs
How 梯 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Wood.
木 gives the meaning and 弟 hints at the sound.
Radical: 木 (tree), shared by 388 characters on this site.
How to remember 梯
梯 combines 木 (wood), the meaning part, with 弟 (dì), the sound part. Picture an older sibling holding a wooden ladder steady while the little brother 弟 climbs it.
梯 is a bound form, so it almost always appears inside words like 楼梯 (lóutī, stairs), 电梯 (diàntī, elevator) and 梯子 (tīzi, ladder). Example: 我们坐电梯上去吧。(Wǒmen zuò diàntī shàngqù ba.) Let's take the elevator up.
Common mistake: Learners often write 第 (dì, ordinal prefix) or 递 (dì) instead, since all share 弟. Remember that 梯 has the wood radical 木 on the left and is read with first tone tī, not dì.
Common words with 梯
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 电梯 | diàntī | elevator; escalator | HSK 4 |
| 楼梯 | lóutī | stair; staircase | HSK 4 |
| 梯子 | tīzi | ladder; stepladder; (Internet slang) VPN or other tool used to circumvent internet censors | HSK 7-9 |
| 阶梯 | jiētī | flight of steps; (fig.) stepping stone; way to reach the goal of | HSK 7-9 |
| 滑梯 | huátī | (children's) sliding board; a slide | HSK 7-9 |
| 楼梯间 | lóutījiān | staircase; flight of stairs | |
| 坐电梯 | zuòdiàntī | to take an elevator |
梯 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 梯
How many strokes are in 梯?
梯 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 梯 mean?
梯 (tī) means ladder, steps, stairs. A common word with it is 电梯 (diàntī), meaning "elevator; escalator".
How do you pronounce 梯?
梯 is pronounced tī, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 梯?
The radical of 梯 is 木, which carries the idea of "tree". Dictionaries list 梯 under this radical.
Is 梯 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 梯 is part of the HSK 4 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why is 梯子 used to mean VPN online?
In internet slang, 梯子 (tīzi, ladder) is a tool for climbing over a wall. It refers to a VPN or similar software used to get past internet blocks. Using one is called 翻墙 (fānqiáng), climbing over the wall.
Does 电梯 mean elevator or escalator?
It can mean either one. If you need to be precise, 直梯 (zhítī) is an elevator and 扶梯 (fútī) or 自动扶梯 is an escalator.