Meaning of 敌人
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- enemy
Measure word: 個|个
How to use 敌人
敌人 is a fairly strong word used for enemies in war, history, politics, or serious personal conflict. In everyday talk about someone you just dislike, people often choose softer words. Example: 他们把我们当成敌人。(Tāmen bǎ wǒmen dàngchéng dírén.) They treat us as enemies.
敌 (dí) means to oppose or resist, and 人 (rén) means person. Put them together and you get the person you stand against: an enemy.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes write 敌 with 舌 on the left but get the right side wrong. The right side is 攵, the same component found in 教 (jiāo) and 放 (fàng). Also keep 敌 in the second tone, dí, and do not say it like 的 (de) or 地 (dì).
敌人 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.
敌 dí · enemy · 10 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
人 rén · person · 2 strokes
- 1
- 2
Related words
Words that share a character with 敌人.
| 女人 | nǚrén | woman |
| 男人 | nánrén | a man; a male |
| 别人 | biérén | other people; others; other person |
| 家人 | jiārén | family member; (old) servant |
| 病人 | bìngrén | sick person; patient |
| 工人 | gōngrén | worker |
| 老人 | lǎorén | old man or woman; the elderly |
| 有人 | yǒu rén | someone; people |
| 人们 | rénmen | people |
| 大人 | dàren | adult; grownup |
| 客人 | kèrén | visitor; guest; customer |
| 好人 | hǎorén | good person; healthy person |
Questions about 敌人
What does 敌人 mean?
敌人 (dírén) means "enemy" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 敌人?
敌人 is made of 2 characters: 敌 (10 strokes), 人 (2 strokes). That is 12 strokes in total.
Is 敌人 an HSK word?
Yes. 敌人 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 敌人 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 敌人 is written 敵人.
How do you say 'friend or enemy' in Chinese?
You can say 是敌是友 (shì dí shì yǒu), meaning 'enemy or friend'. The opposite of 敌人 in everyday speech is 朋友 (péngyou), friend.
Can 敌人 be used for a rival in sports or business?
It sounds too hostile for most rivalries. For competitors people usually say 对手 (duìshǒu), opponent or rival, and keep 敌人 for true enemies.