Meaning of 总体
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- completely
- totally
- total
- entire
- overall
- population (statistics)
How to use 总体
总体 is often used as 总体上 or 总体来说 to give a general judgment after looking at details. It also works before nouns, as in 总体水平 (overall level) or 总体规划 (overall plan), and in statistics it means the population being studied. Example: 总体来说，这次考试不太难。(Zǒngtǐ lái shuō, zhè cì kǎoshì bú tài nán.) Overall, this exam was not too hard.
总 (zǒng) means to gather everything together, and 体 (tǐ) means body. Put all the parts together into one body and you get the whole picture: 总体 (zǒngtǐ), overall.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 总体 (zǒngtǐ) with 全体 (quántǐ). 全体 means all the members of a group of people, as in 全体学生 (all the students). 总体 means the overall situation, as in 总体情况.
总体 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.
总 zǒng · general · 9 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
体 tǐ · body · 7 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
Related words
Words that share a character with 总体.
| 身体 | shēntǐ | the body; one's health |
| 全体 | quántǐ | all; entire |
| 体育 | tǐyù | sports; physical education |
| 体育馆 | tǐyùguǎn | gym; gymnasium |
| 体育场 | tǐyùchǎng | stadium |
| 总是 | zǒngshì | always |
| 媒体 | méitǐ | media, esp. news media |
| 具体 | jùtǐ | concrete; specific; detailed |
| 体验 | tǐyàn | to experience for oneself |
| 团体 | tuántǐ | group; organization |
| 体会 | tǐhuì | to know from experience; to learn through experience |
| 集体 | jítǐ | collective (decision); joint (effort) |
Questions about 总体
What does 总体 mean?
总体 (zǒngtǐ) means "completely; totally" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 总体?
总体 is made of 2 characters: 总 (9 strokes), 体 (7 strokes). That is 16 strokes in total.
Is 总体 an HSK word?
Yes. 总体 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 总体 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 总体 is written 總體.
What is the difference between 总体 and 整体 (zhěngtǐ)?
They are close and often interchangeable in phrases like 总体来看 and 整体来看. 整体 stresses something as one complete unit, as opposed to its parts. 总体 leans toward a summary or general assessment, and it is the word used for population in statistics.
Can 总体 be used as an adverb?
Yes, in a way. People usually say 总体上 or 总体而言 at the start of a sentence to mean overall or on the whole, for example 总体上我很满意 (overall I am satisfied).