东西
The Chinese word for "things" is 东西.
东西 is used to mean "thing" or "stuff". While it can be used in a general sense, it is most commonly used to refer to physical objects or material goods.
What does it mean word for word?
The word for 东西 is composed of the characters for "east" and "west".
How does it change in a sentence?
东西 is a noun that does not change its form for plurality. The context determines if it refers to one thing or multiple things.
Did you know?
- In slang, if someone says you are 'not a thing' (不是东西), they are telling you that you lack basic human morality or principles.
- Calling a person a 东西 is often an insult. Adding an adjective like 'stupid' before it implies the person is not even human, but merely a 'thing'.
- Chinese distinguishes between 东西, which refers to tangible objects, and 事情, which refers to 'things' in the sense of matters, events or tasks.
Examples in context
- 不要再碰我的东西。Don't ever touch my things again.Tatoeba #8784007 by slo_oth, translation #4717615 by xorgy
- 汤姆的东西在哪里？Where are Tom's things?Tatoeba #9956685 by GlossaMatik, translation #1886645 by CK
- 东西在爸爸的车上。The things are in dad's car.Tatoeba #10961059 by xjjAstrus, translation #10967202 by carlosalberto
- 这个饭菜好吃得我快飞起来了！This meal is so delicious. It's making me fly!
- 40 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A man and a woman are cleaning up a living room.
- 梓涵 Zihan这些东西太多了。Zhèxiē dōngxi tài duō le.These things are too many.
- 志强 Zhiqiang先把这些东西收起来吧。Xiān bǎ zhèxiē dōngxi shōu qǐlái ba.Let's put these things away first.
- 梓涵 Zihan你要帮我整理吗？Nǐ yào bāng wǒ zhěnglǐ ma?Are you going to help me organize?
- 志强 Zhiqiang好的，没问题。Hǎo de, méi wèntí.Okay, no problem.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
