得 (děi): must; have to

Meanings

1 must; have to
2 need to; ought to
3 (colloquial spoken) will need / will take (time, money)

Characters

得

děi

must; have to

Examples

我得走了。

Wǒděi zǒu le.

I have to go now.

你得小心一点。

Nǐ děi xiǎoxīn yīdiǎn.

You have to be a bit more careful.

明天我们得准时到。

Míngtiān wǒmen děi zhǔnshí dào.

Tomorrow we have to arrive on time.

Tips

register

děi is the everyday spoken word for 'must / have to' in northern Mandarin and standard speech, sitting between a subject and a verb: 我得睡觉 (I have to sleep). Compare with 必须 (more formal, written) and 要 (broader 'will/want to'). In writing, 必须 is usually preferred.

mistakes

Beginners often misread 我得走 as wǒ dé zǒu (verb 'to obtain') — but here 得 is the spoken modal 'must'. Rule of thumb: subject + 得 + verb = obligation (děi). Verb + 得 + complement = manner/degree (toneless de). Standalone verb 得 = to obtain (dé).

Components

radical

彳 chì

step; left-side stride radical

Left 彳 is the step radical — a small footstep, the left half of 行 'to walk'. Anchors 得 in the motion family: 行, 往, 待, 街, 微. The original oracle-bone 得 showed a hand grasping a cowrie while walking — going out and getting — exactly the picture the three components recreate.

semantic

旦 dàn

dawn; sun over horizon (graphic residue)

Middle 日-over-一 is now read as 旦 dawn, but historically it's a stylised residue of 貝 cowrie / money — the thing being obtained in the original oracle-bone scene. Modern shape is opaque, but historically grounds the meaning 'gain, acquire'. Pure semantic role; supplies no sound. The substitution of 旦 for 貝 happened during the bronze-script period.

semantic

寸 cùn

thumb measure; hand

Bottom-right 寸 — a hand with a marker at the wrist showing the cùn 'inch' measure-point. In 得 it functions pictographically as a hand reaching out to take. Together: 彳 going + cowrie + 寸 hand = walk out, lay your hand on it, 得 it — exactly the action of obtaining.