土

tǔ

noun HSK 6 #2,924

Meanings

A pictograph of a mound of earth — one of the most basic radicals in Chinese.

Zhèlǐ de tǔ hěn féiwò.

The soil here is very fertile.

Tā chuān de hěn tǔ.

He dresses in an unsophisticated way.

Tǔdòu shì yì zhǒng hěn chángjiàn de shūcài.

Potatoes are a very common vegetable.

usage

土 as an adjective means 'rustic' or 'uncool' (opposite of 洋, yáng, foreign/fashionable). 很土 is a mild insult meaning 'tacky' or 'behind the times.'

usage

Common compounds: 土豆 (tǔdòu, potato), 土地 (tǔdì, land), 土壤 (tǔrǎng, soil), 本土 (běntǔ, native/local).

土 tǔ