贴 (tiē) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

贴

tiē[tie1]Tone 1

to stick, paste, subsidy

HSK 4

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貼

Guru Deep Dive

English · to stick, paste, subsidy

Cached lesson

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:9

Writing Balance Rule: The left component (shell) is narrower and slightly elevated, while the right component (fortune/divination) is broader, giving the character a stable and balanced stance.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form (貼) retains the exact same structure as the simplified form (贴), as both use the standard shell radical and phonetic component.

1. Meaning

to stick or paste something onto a surface

to post information online (such as on a blog or social media)to keep close to or follow closelyto subsidize or provide financial allowance

Verb / NounNeutral#actions#finance#digital communication

Sample Usage

请把通知贴在墙上。
Qǐng bǎ tōngzhī tiē zài qiáng shàng.
Please paste the notice on the wall.
这家公司给员工提供房补和车贴。
Zhè jiā gōngsī gěi yuángōng tígōng fángbǔ hé chētiē.
This company provides housing and transport subsidies to its employees.

2. Sound

/[tʰi̯ɛ˥˥]/Tone: 55

贴

tiētie1

¯(55)

=tiē

Initial Consonant

Type: Aspirated Alveolar

Sounds like: t sound as in English 'top'

Aspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: Explosive puff of breath! Tissue held before mouth MUST flutter.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Tongue tip touches the alveolar ridge behind upper front teeth, releasing a strong puff of air.

Final Rhyme

Vowel Group: -e vowel group

Sounds like: rhymes with the 'ye' in 'yes'

Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'yeh'.

Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.

Tone

T1 (55)

5 → 5 (55)

1st Tone (High-Flat)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Maintains a steady, high-pitched pitch level matching the top of your speaking range.

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the high level tone (Tone 1) with the rising tone (Tone 2), causing listeners to hear 'tié' instead of 'tiē'.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: A high, flat musical note, like singing a sustained 'la' at the top of your vocal range without moving up or down.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 9 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left component (shell) is narrower and slightly elevated, while the right component (fortune/divination) is broader, giving the character a stable and balanced stance.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form (貼) retains the exact same structure as the simplified form (贴), as both use the standard shell radical and phonetic component.

4. Components

Radical 贝 · Shell radical (shell, money, value)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 贝 (Indicates money, financial value, or things of worth (subsidies, allowances).)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 占 (original sound: zhān / tiē)

A shell (贝) used for divination or占 (zhān) is pressed and affixed onto a surface, representing sticking, pasting, and financial subsidies.

贝 Shell / money / value
占 To occupy / divine / phonetic clue

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

22· Phonetic Root: 占 (zhān)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally combined the shell radical (贝, representing wealth and currency) with the phonetic component 占 (zhān), initially denoting financial allowances and subsidies before expanding to general acts of pasting and sticking.

Semantic Evolution: From ancient financial grants and subsidies (shell/money), the meaning broadened to physical sticking or pasting objects, and further into digital contexts like posting online messages.

Shells were used as ancient currency in China, which is why characters related to money, price, and subsidies frequently feature the shell radical.

6. Sinosphere

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

You use valuable shell money (贝) to buy a sticker that you need to occupy (占) and stick firmly onto your notebook.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

站

zhànto standUses the person radical (亻) instead of shell (贝).

战

zhànwar / battleUses the spear radical (戈) instead of shell (贝).

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

贴(tiē)

Do not confuse with 站 (zhàn - to stand), which replaces the shell radical with a person radical.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

请把这张海报___在布告栏上。

Clue: tiē

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the tone and pronouncing it with a dipping or falling pitch instead of maintaining a steady high level tone (Tone 1).

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see the character 贴, what does it mean and how is it pronounced?

Production: How do you write the character for 'to stick / paste' using the shell radical?

贴tiēto stick, paste, subsidy

Speed:

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