Meaning of 东北
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- northeast
- Northeast China; Manchuria
How to use 东北
With a lowercase meaning, 东北 is any northeast direction or area, like 东北方向 (dōngběi fāngxiàng). As a proper name, 东北 (Dōngběi) means the region of Northeast China, which covers Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang. Example: 我是东北人。(Wǒ shì Dōngběi rén.) I am from Northeast China.
东北 is simply 东 (dōng, east) plus 北 (běi, north), so it means northeast. Picture a compass needle pointing between east and north.
Common mistake: English says north first in 'northeast', so learners often say 北东. In Chinese the east or west part always comes first: 东北 (dōngběi), 西北 (xīběi), 东南 (dōngnán), 西南 (xīnán).
东北 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
东 dōng · east · 5 strokes
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北 běi · north · 5 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 东北.
| 东西 | dōngxi | east and west |
| 北京 | Běijīng | Beijing municipality, capital of the People's Republic of China (short name 京[Jing1]) |
| 北边 | běibian | north; north side |
| 东边 | dōngbian | east; east side |
| 北方 | běifāng | north; the northern part a country |
| 东方 | dōngfāng | east |
| 西北 | xīběi | northwest |
| 东南 | dōngnán | southeast |
| 北部 | běibù | northern part |
| 东部 | dōngbù | the east; eastern part |
| 房东 | fángdōng | landlord |
| 北极 | běijí | the North Pole; the north magnetic pole |
Questions about 东北
What does 东北 mean?
东北 (dōngběi) means "northeast" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 东北?
东北 is made of 2 characters: 东 (5 strokes), 北 (5 strokes). That is 10 strokes in total.
Is 东北 an HSK word?
Yes. 东北 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 东北 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 东北 is written 東北.
How do you say northwest, southeast and southwest in Chinese?
Use the same pattern with east or west first. Northwest is 西北 (xīběi), southeast is 东南 (dōngnán), and southwest is 西南 (xīnán).
Is 东北 the same as 北方?
No. 北方 (běifāng) means the north in general, including places like Beijing. 东北 (Dōngběi) as a region means only the three northeastern provinces, so it is one part of 北方.