Chinese Conversation · Level 34
90 words
Chinese word
倒计时
Pronunciation
Pinyindào jì shí
Meaning
- verbcount down
Example
大家一起从十开始倒计时。dà jiā yì qǐ cóng shí kāi shǐ dào jì shí
Everyone counts down from ten together.
More examples
跨年夜，人们在广场为新年一起倒计时。kuà nián yè rén men zài guáng chǎng wèi xīn nián yì qǐ dào jì shí
On New Year's Eve, people in the square counted down together to the New Year.
Core concept
Time is shown as a number that steadily decreases until a target moment arrives.
Common phrases
为新年倒计时wèi xīn nián dào jì shí
count down to the New Year
单独倒计时dān dú dào jì shí
count down alone
Similar words
倒数dào shǔ: Counting backward through numbers to show how many seconds or turns remain.
计时jì shí: Measuring and recording how long something lasts or how much time passes.
计数jì shù: Counting things or events to find the total number.
Definition in Chinese
以秒或其他时间单位从一个起始数向下计数，直到零或达到目标时刻的动作或过程。yǐ miǎo huò qí tā shí jiān dān wèi cóng yí gè qí shǐ shù xiàng xià jì shù zhí dào líng huò dá dào mù biāo shí kè de dòng zuò huò guò chéng
Word origin
倒计时 (dàojìshí, "countdown") joins 倒 (dào, "reverse") with 计时 (jìshí, "timekeeping"), creating the idea of measuring time backward from a starting number.
Usage tips
- It commonly appears in announcements about launches, performances, deadlines, and other scheduled events, making it useful for talking about time that remains before something happens.
Other meanings
- countdownnoun
Related words
- 倒计时器dào jì shí qìcountdown timernoun