T

tā 他 PRON he, him ■ “他是谁？”“他是我的 同学。”“Tā shì shéi?” “Tā shì wǒ de tóngxué.”
“Who’s he?” “He’s my classmate.” ■ 他的朋友都 叫他小王。Tā de péngyou dōu jiào tā Xiǎo
Wáng. His friends all call him Xiao Wang.
tāmen 他们 [suffix: 他 he, him + 们 suffix de- noting a plural number] PRON they, them ■ 他们 有困难，
我们要帮助他们。Tāmen yǒu kùnnan, wǒmen yào bāngzhù tāmen. As they’re in difficulty, we
should help them. ■ 这是他们的问题， 我们没有办法。Zhè shì tāmen de wèntí, wǒmen méiyǒu
bànfǎ. This is their problem. There’s nothing we can do.
tā 它 PRON it ■ 它是我的小狗。Tā shì wǒ de xiǎo gǒu. It’s my puppy.
tāmen 它们 [suffix: 它 it + 们 suffix denoting a plural number] PRON (non-human) they, them (plural form
of 它 tā)
tā 她 PRON she, her ■ 她是我班上的女同学。Tā shì wǒ bānshang de nǚ tóngxué. She’s a girl student
in my class.
tāmen 她们 [suffix: 她 she, her + 们 suffix denoting a plural number] PRON (female) they, them
tā 塌 V collapse, cave
tāshi 踏实 ADJ 1 down-to-earth, steadfast 2 peace of mind, free from anxiety
tǎ 塔 N pagoda, tower (座 zuò) ■ 在中国几乎每一 个城市都有一座古塔。Zài Zhōngguó jīhū měi yí
ge chéngshì dōu yǒu yí zuò gǔ tǎ. In China almost every town has an ancient tower.
tāi 胎 N 1 fetus, embryo 2 padding, stuffing (See lúntāi 轮胎.)
tái 台 TRAD 檯 I N table, desk (张 zhāng) ■ 董事长 坐在一张大写字台后面。Dǒngshìzhǎng zuò zai yì
zhāng dà xiězìtái hòumiàn. The chairman of the board sat behind a large desk. II MEASURE WORD (for
machines, big instruments, etc.) 一台机器 yì tái jīqì a machine
táifēng 台风 N typhoon, tropical cyclone (场 cháng)
táijiē 台阶 N flight of steps, step
táishìjī 台式机 N desktop PC
Táiwān 台湾 N Taiwan
tái 抬 V lift, raise ■ 来，咱们俩把桌子抬到外边 去。Lái, zánmen liǎ bǎ zhuōzi táidào wàibian qù.
Come on; let’s move the table outside. 抬高 táigāo raise (prices)
tài 太 ADV 1 excessively, too ■ 今天我太累了，不 去游泳了。Jīntiān wǒ tài lèi le, bú qù yóuyǒng le.
Today I’m too tired to go swimming. ■ 这个房间 太小，坐不下二十个人。Zhège fángjiān tài
xiǎo, zuò bu xià èrshí ge rén. This room is too small. It can’t seat twenty people. 2 extremely, really
■ 太 好了！Tài hǎo le! That’s wonderful! ■ 你们现在 抬高物价，太不讲道理了。Nǐmen
xiànzài táigāo wùjià, tài bù jiǎng dàolǐ le. It is extremely unreasonable of you to raise prices now.
Tàijíquán 太极拳 N shadow boxing, Taichi
tàikōng 太空 N outer space, firmament
tàitai 太太 N 1 Mrs ■ 王先生和王太太常常在家 里请客吃饭。Wáng xiānsheng hé Wáng tàitai
chángcháng zài jiā li qǐngkè chīfàn. Mr and Mrs Wang often give dinner parties in their home. 2
wife ■ 您太太刚才打电话来。Nín tàitai gāngcái dǎ diànhuà lai. Your wife called just now. ■ 今天
是我太太生日，我要早一点回家。Jīntiān shì wǒ tàitai shēngrì, wǒ yào zǎo yìdiǎn huíjiā.
Today’s my wife’s birthday. I need go home earlier.
NOTE: (1) While Mrs is used in English-speaking countries regardless of class or social status, its
Chinese counterpart 太太 tàitai is only used in middle-class or upper-class circles. (2) Although Chinese
women often retain their family names after marriage, 太太 tàitai as a form of address must be prefixed
by the husband’s family name.