(méi tǐ) - the media, a medium in Mandarin
méitǐTraditional: 媒體
Translation
the media, a medium
Word origin
A modern compound of 媒 (méi, an intermediary, originally a matchmaker) and 体 (tǐ, body, form), coined to render the Western term medium.
- Origin
- compound
- Root
- 媒 (méi, intermediary) + 体 (tǐ, body, form)
Stroke order
媒
体
Examples
。
The matter was reported by the media.
。
Many news organisations came to the scene.
。
He does not like talking to the media.
。
Social media has changed our lives.
。
Media reports are not necessarily all correct.
媒体 (méi tǐ) is the press and broadcasting taken together, and also a single outlet within it. Chinese happily counts it, so 很多媒体 means many news organisations, where English has to say outlets or organisations because "many medias" is not available.
It is a recent word built for a modern idea, and it now anchors a family of them: 社交媒体 for social media, 新媒体 for online publishing as opposed to newspapers and television, 自媒体 for one person running their own channel, and 多媒体 for multimedia.
The trap is the older, wider English sense. A medium in the sense of a physical carrier, the paint or the wire the signal travels down, is 介质 (jiè zhì) in Chinese, and 媒体 is not used that way. Nor does it ever mean a spiritual medium. Keep it to news and publishing and you will always be right.
Where this fits
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媒体: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "媒体" (the media, a medium): 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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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 47.