Chinese word

肚子

Pronunciation

Pinyindù zi

Meaning

  • nounstomach

Example

我肚子饿了。wǒ dù zi è le

My stomach feels empty.

Illustration for 肚子 (stomach)

More examples

他吃了不干净的东西，肚子疼得很厉害。tā chī le bú gàn jìng de dōng xī dǔ zi téng de hěn lì hài

He ate something unclean, and his stomach hurt badly.

Core concept

A familiar body-area word that links the visible belly with sensations felt inside it.

Common phrases

  • 肚子饿dù zi è

    feel hungry

  • 肚子疼dǔ zi téng

    have a stomachache

  • 肚子里dǔ zi lǐ

    inside the stomach

Similar words

胃wèi: The internal organ that holds food and helps digest it.
腹fù: The front part of the body between the chest and the pelvis.
腹部fù bù: The area between the chest and pelvis, used in formal or written descriptions of the body.

Definition in Chinese

口语中指人的腹部，尤指前腹部的俗称，也常用来概括饿、胀、疼等内部感觉。kóu yǔ zhōng zhǐ rén de fù bù yóu zhǐ qián fù bù de sú chēng yě cháng yòng lái gài kuò è zhàng téng děng nèi bù gǎn jué

Word origin

肚 (dù, "belly") supplies the body-area meaning, while 子 (zi, "noun-forming suffix") turns it into a familiar everyday noun.

Usage tips

  • English speakers often associate abdomen with medical or formal language, but this Chinese word belongs naturally to ordinary conversation about bodily states, not just clinical descriptions.

Other meanings

  • abdomennoun

Related words

Word lists with this word