里/裡 lǐ — in, inside

Meanings

1. 1

   in, inside

   A position word placed after the noun: 家里 "at home, inside the house", 商店里 "in the shop". Place names such as 北京 and 中国 take no 里.

   noun

Example sentences

• 杯子里有水。/杯子裡有水。Bēizi (first tone, high and level) lǐ (third tone, dipping) yǒu (third tone, dipping) shuǐ. (third tone, dipping)···

  There’s water in the cup.

• 我的书在家里。/我的書在家裡。Wǒ (third tone, dipping) de (neutral tone) shū (first tone, high and level) zài (fourth tone, falling) jiā (first tone, high and level) lǐ. (third tone, dipping)···

  My book is at home.

Common mistakes

• Not quite我在中国里学习。

  Correct我在中国学习。

  Countries and cities are already places, so they take no 里. Reserve it for containers, rooms and buildings.

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