夏天
hē-thiⁿ
夏天 (hē-thiⁿ) is the Hokkien word for summer.
This noun refers to the hottest season of the year.
Meaning: hottest season (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of 夏, meaning summer and 天, meaning sky or day/season.
How do you pronounce it?
hē-thiⁿ
Did you know?
- In some Southern Min traditions, the 'summer' is not just a time of year but is symbolically linked to specific lunar festivals that dictate when certain foods should be eaten.
- In some Hokkien dialects, the word 夏 can be used in compound words relating to 'below' or 'lower' positions, unrelated to the season.
- The character 天 in 夏天 shares a root with words for 'heaven', reflecting an ancient belief that the seasons were governed by the celestial will of the sky.
Examples in context
- 夏天真熱。hā-tiān chin jia̍t.Summer is very hot.
- 我最愛夏天。goá tsuì ài hā-tiān.I love summer the most.
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about the weather.
- 美玲 Mei-ling國強，你喜歡夏天嗎？Kók-kiông, lí kah-ì hà-tiān–mā?Guoqiang, do you like summer?
- 國強 Kok-kiang我不喜歡，因為太熱了。Guá bù kah-ì, in-uī thài rē-liáu.I don't like it because it's too hot.
- 美玲 Mei-ling但是夏天可以吃冰。Tān-sī hà-tiān khó-í chia̍h ping.But you can eat ice cream in summer.
- 國強 Kok-kiang對，這是最好的部分。Tùi, che sī zuì hó ê pō͘-fēn.True, that is the best part.
