(de) - of, possessive and modifier particle in Mandarin
deTraditional: 的
Translation
of, possessive and modifier particle
Word origin
的 is a phono-semantic compound: 白 (white) is the meaning element and 勺 (sháo) the phonetic. It originally referred to a bright target or bullseye, then was borrowed as the very common possessive and modifier particle 'de'.
- Origin
- phono-semantic compound
- Root
- 白 (bái, white) + 勺 (sháo, phonetic)
Stroke order
的
Examples
。
This is my book.
。
Her mother is very nice.
红。
The red car is very pretty.
椅。
This is the teacher's chair.
乱。
My elder brother's room is very messy.
的 (de) is the most common particle in Mandarin, marking possession and modification.
Where this fits
Appears in 8 words
Multi-character compounds in the corpus that contain 的.
Used in
Stories
(16)不知道在哪里
2 min read · Core 1000
点错了
2 min read · Core 1000
错过公车
3 min read · Core 1000
打电话
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看医生
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迷路
3 min read · Core 1000
上班第一天
3 min read · Core 1000
生日的惊喜
3 min read · Core 1000
下雨的下午
3 min read · Core 1000
新邻居
3 min read · Core 1000
一起做饭
3 min read · Core 1000
早上的市场
3 min read · Core 1000
最后的车
3 min read · Core 1000
今年去哪里
4 min read · Core 1000
卖东西的地方
4 min read · Core 1000
看场合
5 min read · Core 1000
Grammar articles
(43)Mandarin Adjectives as Stative Verbs: Why 'I Am Cold' Is 我冷, Not 我是冷
Mandarin Advanced Grammar (C1-C2 / HSK 6+): Chengyu, Classical Remnants, and Register
The Mandarin 被 (bèi) Passive: Saying Something Was Done To the Subject
Mandarin Causatives 使 (shǐ), 令 (lìng) and 让 (ràng): Making Someone Feel or Do Something
Mandarin Grammar Cheatsheet: The Essentials, One Page
Mandarin 除了...以外: One Frame, Two Opposite Meanings
Mandarin Comparatives: 比, 比较, 最, 跟…一样 and How to Say 'More', 'Most', 'Same As'
Mandarin Complements: 得 for Manner, Directional Endings, and How to Attach a Result to a Verb
Mandarin Conditionals: 如果, 要是, 的话 and the 就 That Finishes the Sentence
Mandarin Conjunctions: 虽然…但是, 因为…所以, 如果…就 and the Paired Structures That Join Clauses
The Mandarin Copula 是 (shì): To Be, and When to Leave It Out
Duration Complements in Mandarin (时量补语): How to Say How Long an Action Lasts
The Mandarin Durative 着 (zhe): Marking a State That Continues (门开着, 拿着书, 笑着说)
Mandarin Existential and Presentative Sentences: 有, 出现, 发生 and Why New Things Go After the Verb
Formal Mandarin Connectives: 然而, 因此, 于是 and 尽管 (The Written Register)
Mandarin Four-Character Idioms (四字格): The Shape, Not the List
Mandarin Intermediate Grammar (B1-B2 / HSK 4-5): Complements, Conjunctions and the Full 了 System
Mandarin Question Words: 什么 (shénme), 谁 (shéi), 哪 (nǎ) and Friends Stay Where the Answer Goes
The Mandarin 连...都/也 Construction: How to Say 'Even', and Why the Word Has to Move
Mandarin Location and Existence: 在 for Where, 有 for There Is, and the 上/下/里/外 Position Words
Mandarin Modal Verbs: 会, 想, 要, 应该, 可以, 能 and the Future-Intent Words 打算, 准备
The Spoken Passives 让 (ràng), 叫 (jiào) and 给 (gěi): What People Say Instead of 被
Mandarin Possession with 的 (de): My, Your, His, and When Mandarin Drops the Particle
Mandarin Potential Complements: Can You Reach the Result? (吃得完, 听不懂, 买不起)
Mandarin Question Formation: 吗, V-Not-V, 还是, and the In-Situ Wh-Word System
Mandarin Relative Clauses with 的 (de): How the Modifier Goes Before the Noun
Mandarin Requests and Imperatives: 请, 别, 不要, the Softening Particles 吧/啊, and Verb Reduplication
Mandarin Resultative Complements: Fusing a Result onto the Verb (看见, 吃完, 找到)
Mandarin Rhetorical Questions: 难道, 不是...吗, 何必 and 岂不
Mandarin Sentence-Final Particles: 吧, 呢, 啊, 嘛, 吗 and the Final 了
The Mandarin 是…的 (shì...de) Construction: Highlighting When, Where, and How Something Happened
The Mandarin 所 (suǒ) Family: 所有, 所谓, 所 + Verb, and the 为...所 Passive
The Three de in Mandarin: 的, 得, and 地 and How to Tell Them Apart
Topic-Comment Structure in Mandarin: Fronting 这本书我看过 and Why Word Order Bends
Mandarin Verb-Object Verbs: Why 'To Eat' Is 吃饭 and How It Splits Apart
Mandarin Sentence Structure: Word Order, Topic-Comment and the 把 Construction
Mandarin 性 (xìng) and 化 (huà): Building Abstract Nouns and '-ise' Verbs
Yes-No Questions in Mandarin: 吗 (ma), Echo Answers, and the Bounce-Back 呢 (ne)
The Mandarin 以 (yǐ) Family: 以为, 以及, 以便, 以免, 以来 and 以...为...
又 (yòu) vs 再 (zài) vs 还 (hái) in Mandarin: The Three Ways to Say 'Again'
The Mandarin 于 (yú) Family: 对于, 关于, 由于, 至于, 属于, 位于, 终于
The Mandarin 者 (zhě) Suffix: 作者, 读者, 前者, and Naming the One Who Does It
Mandarin 之 (zhī): 之一, 之间, 之后, 之中, 总之 and the Written Ancestor of 的
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的: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "的" (of, possessive and modifier particle): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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