天 tiān day
day; sky; nature; fate
How to remember 天: 一 one + 大 big = day. On one big family trip to the beach the kids swim from sunrise to sunset, and nobody wants the day to end.
Component breakdown
天 = 一 one + 大 big
- 一 one
- 大 big
On one big family trip to the beach the kids swim from sunrise to sunset, and nobody wants the day to end.
How it came to be
A person standing with the arms thrown wide, and one line laid across the top of them, not touching, just above. What is above a person and out of reach.
How it is used
- 'Day' and 'sky/heaven' - 今天 (jīntiān) today, 三天 (sān tiān) three days; 天空 (tiānkōng) the sky.
- For the 24-hour day, 天 is the everyday spoken word (今天, 每天), while 日 (rì) is more formal/written.
- 天气 (tiānqì) is weather; 天 also carries a sense of nature/fate in 天生 (tiānshēng) inborn and 老天 (lǎotiān) the heavens.
Characters built with 天
Words with 天
- 今天jīntiāntodayHSK 1
- 明天míngtiāntomorrowHSK 1
- 天气tiānqìweatherHSK 1
- 昨天zuótiānyesterdayHSK 1
- 星期天xīngqītiānSundayHSK 1
- 白天báitiāndaytimeHSK 1
- 冬天dōngtiānwinterHSK 3
- 前天qiántiānthe day before yesterdayHSK 3
- 半天bàntiāna long time, half a dayHSK 3
- 后天hòutiānthe day after tomorrowHSK 3
- 夏天xiàtiānsummerHSK 3
- 春天chūntiānspring (season)HSK 3
- 秋天qiūtiānautumnHSK 3
- 聊天儿liáotiānrto chat (spoken, erhua)HSK 3
- 天上tiānshàngthe skyHSK 5
- 天空tiānkōngskyHSK 5
- 改天gǎitiānanother dayHSK 5
- 天下tiānxiàland under heavenHSK 6
- 天才tiāncáitalentHSK 6
- 天文tiānwénastronomyHSK 6
- 天然tiānránnaturalHSK 6
- 天然气tiānránqìnatural gasHSK 6
- 天真tiānzhēnnaiveHSK 6
- 当天dàngtiānthe same dayHSK 6
- 先天xiāntiānembryonic period (contrasted with 后天)HSK 7
- 冰天雪地bīngtiān-xuědìa world of ice and snowHSK 7
- 半边天bànbiāntiānhalf the skyHSK 7
- 天使tiānshǐangelHSK 7
- 天分tiānfènnatural giftHSK 7
- 天地tiāndìheaven and earthHSK 7
- 天平tiānpíngscales (to weigh things)HSK 7
- 天性tiānxìngnatureHSK 7
- 天桥tiānqiáoTianqiao district of Jinan city 济南市, ShandongHSK 7
- 天生tiānshēngnatureHSK 7
- 天线tiānxiànantennaHSK 7
- 天花板tiānhuābǎnceiling (of a room)HSK 7
- 天长地久tiāncháng-dìjiǔenduring while the world lasts (idiom)HSK 7
- 惊天动地jīngtiān-dòngdìworld-shakingHSK 7
- 成天chéngtiānall day longHSK 7
- 航天hángtiānspace flightHSK 7
Example sentences
- 一个星期有七天。 Yí gè xīngqī yǒu qī tiān.There are seven days in a week.
- 这时候天黑了。 Zhè shíhou tiān hēi le.The sun went down at this time.
- 我每天经过这家店。 Wǒ měitiān jīngguò zhè jiā diàn.I pass by this shop every day.
- 天完全黑了。 Tiān wánquán hēi le.The sky turned completely dark.