的
de
(possessive particle)
Type: ParticlesHSK 1
Radical 白 (white) + 勺 (ladle). It originally meant 'bright' and worked as an adjective. Over time it became the most frequent grammatical particle in Chinese, much like 'of' or the English possessive.
It's the most frequent word in written Chinese. It turns up in every sentence, which is why learners notice it constantly. It also forms adjectives: 红的 (red one), 大的 (big one).
白báiwhite
勺sháoladle
这是我的书。
Zhè shì wǒ de shū.
This is my book.
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- 90 radicals explained
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