都 dōu, dū — (dōu) all, both, entirely; even; already; (dū) a capital, a metropolis
dōu (first tone, high and level) dū (first tone, high and level)
2 readings — the first is the most common.
(dōu) all, both, entirely; even; already; (dū) a capital, a metropolis
10 strokesRadical 邑Frequency #59
Pinyin
- dōu (first tone, high and level)most common
- dū (first tone, high and level)
(dōu) all, both, entirely; even; already; (dū) a capital, a metropolis
Character breakdown
Ideographic description
⿰者阝The sequence reads left to right and describes how the parts are arranged.
- 者sound partno entry yet者 zhě for the sound; on its own it is the classical suffix "the one who".
- 阝meaning partno entry yetThe city radical 邑 on the right: a walled settlement and the people in it.
Mnemonic
A settlement 阝 with 者 for the sound: the great city where everything is gathered, dū — 首都 a capital, 成都 the city of Chengdu. From "everything gathered" the word was borrowed for the adverb dōu, "all", and that is what you will meet first. Its position is fixed: it goes before the verb and refers back, so 我们都是学生, never 都我们.
A memory aid written by HSK Guide editors. It is not an etymology and does not describe the historical origin of the character.