Chinese word

抖动

Pronunciation

Pinyindǒu dòng

Meaning

  • verbvibrate

Example

我的手机在包里不停地抖动。wǒ de shǒu jī zài bāo lǐ bù tíng dì dǒu dòng

My phone kept vibrating in my bag.

Illustration for 抖动 (vibrate)

More examples

他紧张得手开始抖动。tā jǐn zhāng de shǒu kāi shǐ dǒu dòng

He was so nervous that his hand began to tremble.

Core concept

A force or inner mechanism causes brief, repeated shaking.

Common phrases

  • 手机抖动shǒu jī dǒu dòng

    phone vibrates

  • 身体抖动shēn tǐ dǒu dòng

    body trembles

  • 手抖动shǒu dǒu dòng

    hand trembles

Similar words

震动zhèn dòng: Produce strong shaking throughout an object or across the ground.
摇晃yáo huàng: Move greatly from side to side or back and forth in a swaying motion.
颤抖chàn dǒu: Make small, repeated trembling movements because of cold, nervousness, or tension.
抖dǒu: Give a hand or small object a light shake.

Definition in Chinese

（指物体或装置）在外力或自身作用下产生短促的细小来回振动。zhǐ wù tǐ huò zhuāng zhì zài wài lì huò zì shēn zuò yòng xià chǎn shēng duǎn cù de xì xiǎo lái huí zhèn dòng

Word origin

The compound 抖 (dǒu, "shake") + 动 (dòng, "move") combines a shaking action with movement to express repeated small motion.

Usage tips

  • In everyday Chinese, this verb is especially natural for a phone, screen, or machine part, while English speakers may first expect a shaking verb to describe a person.

Other meanings

  • trembleverb
  • tremornoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word