差一点儿 meaning in English
erhua variant of 差一點|差一点[cha4 yi1 dian3]
Meaning of 差一点儿
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- erhua variant of 差一點|差一点[cha4 yi1 dian3]
How to use 差一点儿
差一点儿 goes before the verb to say something almost happened. It is common in spoken northern Mandarin, and 差点儿 (chàdiǎnr) is an even shorter version. Example: 我差一点儿迟到了。(Wǒ chà yīdiǎnr chídào le.) I was almost late.
差 (chà) means short of or lacking, and 一点儿 (yīdiǎnr) means a little bit. Put together, 差一点儿 is "short by just a little bit," which gives the sense of almost or nearly.
Common mistake: Learners often read 差 here as chā or chāi. In this word it is always chà. Learners also get confused by 差一点儿没迟到. For an unwanted event like being late, it means the same as 差一点儿迟到: I almost was late, but I wasn't.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
差 chà · different · 9 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
一 yī · one · 1 strokes
- 1
点 diǎn · to touch briefly · 9 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
儿 ér · son · 2 strokes
- 1
- 2
Related words
Words that share a character with 差一点儿.
| 一起 | yīqǐ | (in) the same place; together; in company (with) |
| 一样 | yīyàng | same; like |
| 一些 | yīxiē | some; a few; a little; (following an adjective) slightly ...er |
| 这儿 | zhèr | here |
| 儿子 | érzi | son |
| 哪儿 | nǎr | where?; wherever; anywhere; somewhere |
| 女儿 | nǚ'ér | daughter |
| 那儿 | nàr | there |
| 一会儿 | yīhuìr | a moment; a while |
| 一半 | yībàn | half |
| 一边 | yībiān | one side; either side |
| 地点 | dìdiǎn | place; site |
Questions about 差一点儿
What does 差一点儿 mean?
差一点儿 (chàyīdiǎnr) means "erhua variant of 差一點|差一点[cha4 yi1 dian3]" and is used as a adverb.
How do you write 差一点儿?
差一点儿 is made of 4 characters: 差 (9 strokes), 一 (1 strokes), 点 (9 strokes), 儿 (2 strokes). That is 21 strokes in total.
Is 差一点儿 an HSK word?
Yes. 差一点儿 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 差一点儿 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 差一点儿 is written 差一點兒.
What is the difference between 差一点儿 and 几乎?
Both can mean almost. 差一点儿 is more colloquial and usually describes an event that nearly happened. 几乎 (jīhū) is more neutral and also works with amounts, as in 几乎所有人 (almost everyone).
Can 差一点儿 express relief or regret?
Yes. With a bad event, such as 差一点儿摔倒 (almost fell), it shows relief that it did not happen. With a wished-for event, such as 差一点儿就赢了 (almost won), it shows regret that it fell just short.