地球
the Earth
HSK level
- Pinyin
- dìqiú
- Part of speech
- noun
- Level
- HSK 4
- Strokes
- 17
- Register
- neutral
- Measure word
- 个
- In episodes
- 2
Stroke order for 地球
地球 is written with 17 strokes (地: 6, 球: 11). The animation replays automatically.
What does 地球 mean?
地球 (dìqiú) is the noun for 'the Earth' — our planet, the globe we live on.
It combines 地 ('ground / earth') and 球 ('ball / sphere'), so it literally reads 'earth-ball,' a transparent compound that maps neatly onto the idea of a planet. It's used in geography, science, and environmental contexts: 保护地球 ('protect the Earth'), 地球上 ('on Earth'). English speakers should note the split that trips learners up: 地球 is the planet, while 地 alone means 'ground / land / floor' and 土 means 'soil / dirt.'
You don't call the ground 地球. It's neutral in register and equally at home in a child's textbook or a scientific report. Related planet-and-space vocabulary follows the same 球 pattern: 月球 (yuèqiú, the Moon) and 星球 (xīngqiú, a celestial body/planet).
Character by character
Memory hook: 地 (earth) + 球 (ball) → the earth-ball = our planet.
Hear 地球 in real episodes
地球 appears in 2 Fluentide podcast episodes at natural native speed. Each sentence plays at the easiest difficulty it exists in — switch it to hear the same moment at your level, with full pinyin and English throughout.
它们靠太阳来判断方向，还能感知地球的磁场，花两个月飞四千公里，回到墨西哥。
They use the sun to find their direction and can also sense Earth's magnetic field; over two months they fly four thousand kilometers back to Mexico.
No Monarch Butterfly Ever Finishes Its Own Migration — the Trip Takes Four Generations
我们在地球上，为什么不太怕这些石头？
On Earth, why aren't we very afraid of these rocks?
NASA Spots the Moon's Biggest New Crater in Years — a Warning for Future Moon Bases
Example sentences
地球是我们唯一的家。
Dìqiú shì wǒmen wéiyī de jiā.
The Earth is our only home.
neutral
我们应该保护地球。
Wǒmen yīnggāi bǎohù dìqiú.
We should protect the Earth.
neutral
地球围绕太阳转。
Dìqiú wéirào tàiyáng zhuàn.
The Earth revolves around the Sun.
written
老师用地球仪给我们讲课。
Lǎoshī yòng dìqiúyí gěi wǒmen jiǎngkè.
The teacher used a globe to teach us.
spoken
Common phrases with 地球
Synonyms
Don't confuse 地球 with
FAQ
Related words from the same episodes
Acquire it by listening
Meet 地球 again — in real Chinese, at your level.
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