Meaning of 地下
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- underground; subterranean
- covert; clandestine
- ground; floor
How to use 地下
Read as dìxià, it means underground, as in 地下室 (dìxiàshì, basement) or 地下铁 (subway), and it can also mean secret or covert, like 地下组织 (an underground organization). Read as dìxia with a neutral tone, it means the ground or floor in everyday speech. Example: 车停在地下停车场。(Chē tíng zài dìxià tíngchēchǎng.) The car is parked in the underground parking lot.
地 (dì) means earth or ground, and 下 (xià) means below. Put them together and you get what is below the ground: underground.
Common mistake: Learners often use one pronunciation for both meanings. Say dìxià with a full fourth tone for underground, but dìxia with a light neutral tone when you mean the floor, as in 书掉在地下了 (the book fell on the floor).
地下 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.
地 de · -ly · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
下 xià · down · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
Related words
Words that share a character with 地下.
| 地方 | dìfang | region; regional (away from the central administration) |
| 坐下 | zuò xia | to sit down |
| 下次 | xià cì | next time |
| 下午 | xiàwǔ | afternoon; p.m. |
| 地上 | dìshang | on the ground; on the floor |
| 地点 | dìdiǎn | place; site |
| 下车 | xià chē | to get off or out of (a bus, train, car etc) |
| 地图 | dìtú | map |
| 楼下 | lóu xià | downstairs |
| 下班 | xiàbān | to finish work; to get off work; next service (train, bus etc) |
| 下雨 | xià yǔ | to rain |
| 下课 | xiàkè | to finish class; to get out of class |
Questions about 地下
What does 地下 mean?
地下 (dìxià) means "underground; subterranean; covert; clandestine" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 地下?
地下 is made of 2 characters: 地 (6 strokes), 下 (3 strokes). That is 9 strokes in total.
Is 地下 an HSK word?
Yes. 地下 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 地下 and 地上?
地上 (dìshang) means on the ground or on the floor surface. 地下 (dìxià) usually means beneath the ground. In casual speech 地下 (dìxia) can also mean the floor, so the two can overlap in that sense.
Is 地下 used for the subway in Chinese?
In mainland China the subway is usually called 地铁 (dìtiě), which is short for 地下铁道. You will see 地下 in related words like 地下通道 (underground passage).