Definition
滴水 is a two-character compound that can function as a noun meaning 'a drop of water' or as a verb-object phrase (v.o.) meaning 'to drip water'. As a verb-object, it is separable (离合词): you can insert a measure word, number, or complement between 滴 and 水, e.g. 滴了一滴水 'dripped a drop of water'. The noun sense is concrete and countable, while the verb-object sense describes the action of liquid falling drop by drop. For HSK 7 learners, be aware of its use in idioms like 滴水不漏 ('watertight, flawless').
n./v.o.
a drop of water(verb-object) to drip waterto leak water drop by drop
Examples
- 滴水。Zhuōzi shàng yǒu yì dī shuǐ.There is a drop of water on the table.
- 滴水。Shuǐlóngtóu yìzhí zài dī shuǐ.The faucet has been dripping.
- 。Tā zhǐ dī le jǐ dī shuǐ.He only dripped a few drops of water.
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