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HSK 3

体育

sports; physical education; athletics

nounneutral
体
tǐ3rd tone
育
yù4th tone

HSK level

1
2
3
4
5
6
Pinyin
tǐyù
Part of speech
noun
Level
HSK 3
Strokes
15
Register
neutral
Measure word
门 / 项

Stroke order for 体育

体育 is written with 15 strokes (体: 7, 育: 8). The animation replays automatically.

What does 体育 mean?

体育 (tǐyù) is the umbrella noun for 'sports / physical education / athletics' as a domain — the whole field of organized physical activity.

Literally 'body-education,' it covers school P.E. (体育课), competitive sports (体育比赛), and the sports industry/world generally (体育新闻 'sports news,' 体育明星 'sports star'). Important distinction English speakers miss: 体育 names the category, but the act of exercising or playing a specific sport is 运动 (yùndòng) or 锻炼 (duànliàn).

You don't 'do 体育' the way you 'do sports' in English; instead you do 运动 (exercise) or 打/踢 a specific sport. Compounds to learn: 体育馆 (tǐyùguǎn, 'gym / stadium'), 体育场 (tǐyùchǎng, 'stadium'), 体育课 (P.E. class), 体育用品 (sporting goods).

Character by character

体tǐbody
+
育yùto educate; to raise
=
体育

Memory hook: 体 'body' + 育 'educate' = education of the body — physical education, sports.

Example sentences

我们今天有体育课。

Wǒmen jīntiān yǒu tǐyù kè.

We have P.E. class today.

neutral

他喜欢看体育新闻。

Tā xǐhuan kàn tǐyù xīnwén.

He likes watching sports news.

neutral

体育馆就在学校旁边。

Tǐyùguǎn jiù zài xuéxiào pángbiān.

The gym is right next to the school.

neutral

我哥哥是一个体育老师。

Wǒ gēge shì yí ge tǐyù lǎoshī.

My older brother is a P.E. teacher.

spoken

中国人很喜欢体育比赛。

Zhōngguó rén hěn xǐhuan tǐyù bǐsài.

Chinese people really enjoy sports competitions.

neutral

Common phrases with 体育

体育课tǐyù kèP.E. class
体育馆tǐyùguǎngym; indoor stadium
体育老师tǐyù lǎoshīP.E. teacher
体育比赛tǐyù bǐsàisports competition
体育新闻tǐyù xīnwénsports news

Synonyms

运动yùndòng

运动 is the active verb 'to exercise / play sports' and also a general noun for the activity itself (我喜欢运动 'I like exercising'). 体育 is the category/discipline — the school subject, the industry, the news section.

Don't confuse 体育 with

运动yùndòng

运动 = the verb/activity of doing sports. 体育 = the field/subject of sports. Say 我每天运动 ('I exercise every day'), not 我每天体育.

身体shēntǐ

身体 means 'body / health' (你身体好吗? 'How's your health?'). It shares 体 with 体育 but is unrelated — 身体 is the body itself, 体育 is education of the body.

FAQ

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