第一
first; number one
dì-yī
What does 第一 mean?
第一 (dì-yī) means 'first' — the ordinal number 'one,' as in first place, first time, or first item in a sequence. Chinese forms ordinals with the prefix 第 (dì) plus a number: 第一 'first,' 第二 'second,' 第三 'third,' and so on. This is one of the cleanest grammar patterns in the language — once you know 第, you can build every ordinal. Three common uses: ranking (第一名, 'first place'), enumeration (第一，... 第二，...
, 'firstly... secondly...'), and 'the first time' (第一次, dì-yī cì). Note the tone-change: 一 alone is yī, but in 第一 the tone stays as yī (high level) because 第 has already turned the number into an ordinal — it does not behave like the regular 一 + measure-word tone-change rules.
Character breakdown
ordinal-number prefix
one
Memory hook: 第 turns any number into an ordinal — like adding '-st / -nd / -th' in English.
Example sentences
这是我第一次来中国。
Zhè shì wǒ dì-yī cì lái Zhōngguó.
This is my first time coming to China.
neutral
他得了第一名。
Tā dé le dì-yī míng.
He got first place.
neutral
第一天上班，我很紧张。
Dì-yī tiān shàngbān, wǒ hěn jǐnzhāng.
First day at work, I was so nervous.
spoken
你是第一个到的。
Nǐ shì dì-yī ge dào de.
You're the first one to arrive.
spoken
学习汉语，第一是要多听。
Xuéxí Hànyǔ, dì-yī shì yào duō tīng.
When studying Chinese, the first thing is to listen a lot.
neutral
Common phrases with 第一
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第一 appears in 3 podcast episodes at natural native speed, with full Chinese script, pinyin, and line-by-line English translation.
Synonyms
首 means 'first / head' in formal compounds (首次, 'first time'; 首位, 'top spot'). 第一 is the everyday version; 首 is literary or used in news/business writing.
Spoken alternative for 'first' in casual speech: 头一次 ('first time'), 头一个 ('the first one'). Slightly more colloquial than 第一; both are common.
Don't confuse 第一 with
一 is the cardinal number 'one' (一个人, 'one person'). 第一 is the ordinal 'first.' Without 第, the meaning shifts from rank to count.
第二 ('second') uses the same 第 prefix. Just swap the number after 第 to form any ordinal.
弟 ('younger brother') is a different character with the same pinyin as 第. 第一 = first; 弟
FAQ
Related words from the same episodes
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