东西

东西 (dōngxi, neutral tone on 西) is the everyday Chinese word for 'thing' or 'stuff' — any physical object whose name you can't or don't want to specify. It's the go-to word when shopping (买东西 'buy things'), packing, or pointing at something on a table.

Two surprises for English speakers: first, the same two characters read with full tones — 东西 (dōngxī) — literally mean 'east-west' and refer to directions, so context matters; second, calling a PERSON 东西 is an insult (你这个东西 = 'you piece of work') and the affectionate 小东西 ('little thing') is reserved for babies and pets. The neutral-tone reading is also why dictionaries often write it 'dōngxi' rather than 'dōngxī.'