到底

Chinese

		to (a place); until (a time); up to to (a place); until (a time); up to; to go; to arrive	background; bottom; base background; bottom; base; (possessive part.); (subor. part.)
trad. (到底)		到	底
simp. #(到底)		到	底

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): dàodǐ

  (Zhuyin): ㄉㄠˋ ㄉㄧˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): dou³ dai²
• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): to-tái
• Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): tò-tí / tò͘-tí / tàu-tí / tàu-té / tàu-tóe / kàu-tóe / kàu-té

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: dàodǐ
    • Zhuyin: ㄉㄠˋ ㄉㄧˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: dàodǐ
    • Wade–Giles: tao⁴-ti³
    • Yale: dàu-dǐ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: dawdii
    • Palladius: даоди (daodi)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tɑʊ̯⁵¹ ti²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: dou³ dai²
    • Yale: dou dái
    • Cantonese Pinyin: dou³ dai²
    • Guangdong Romanization: dou³ dei²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tou̯³³ tɐi̯³⁵/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: to-tái
    • Hakka Romanization System: do dai`
    • Hagfa Pinyim: do⁴ dai³
    • Sinological IPA: /to⁵⁵ tai̯³¹/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Zhangzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tò-tí
    • Tâi-lô: tò-tí
    • Phofsit Daibuun: doirdie
    • IPA (Xiamen, Zhangzhou): /to²¹⁻⁵³ ti⁵³/
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tò͘-tí
    • Tâi-lô: tòo-tí
    • Phofsit Daibuun: dordie
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /tɔ⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ ti⁵⁵⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou, variant in Taiwan, Philippines)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tàu-tí
    • Tâi-lô: tàu-tí
    • Phofsit Daibuun: dao'die
    • IPA (Quanzhou, Philippines): /tau⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ ti⁵⁵⁴/
    • IPA (Taipei): /tau¹¹⁻⁵³ ti⁵³/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /tau²¹⁻⁴¹ ti⁴¹/
  • (Hokkien: Kaohsiung)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tàu-té
    • Tâi-lô: tàu-té
    • Phofsit Daibuun: dao'dea
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /tau²¹⁻⁴¹ te⁴¹/
  • (Hokkien: Taipei)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tàu-tóe
    • Tâi-lô: tàu-tué
    • Phofsit Daibuun: dao'doea
    • IPA (Taipei): /tau¹¹⁻⁵³ tue⁵³/
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, variant in Taiwan)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kàu-tóe
    • Tâi-lô: kàu-tué
    • Phofsit Daibuun: kao'doea
    • IPA (Xiamen): /kau²¹⁻⁵³ tue⁵³/
    • IPA (Taipei): /kau¹¹⁻⁵³ tue⁵³/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /kau⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ tue⁵⁵⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou, variant in Taiwan)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kàu-té
    • Tâi-lô: kàu-té
    • Phofsit Daibuun: kao'dea
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /kau²¹⁻⁴¹ te⁴¹/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /kau²¹⁻⁵³ te⁵³/

Adverb

(deprecated template usage) 到底

1. actually; are or are not; after all

   你到底爱不爱我？ [MSC, trad. and simp.]

   Nǐ dàodǐ ài bù ài wǒ? [Pinyin]

   Do you love me or not?

2. finally; in the end; when all is said and done

   離異家庭到底還是會影響到孩子。 [MSC, trad.]
   离异家庭到底还是会影响到孩子。 [MSC, simp.]

   Líyì jiātíng dàodǐ háishì huì yǐngxiǎng dào háizi. [Pinyin]

   Children from divorced families will be affected in the end.

3. until the end; to the finish; until something is done

   既然已經幫助他了，就索性幫到底。 [MSC, trad.]
   既然已经帮助他了，就索性帮到底。 [MSC, simp.]

   Jìrán yǐjīng bāngzhù tā le, jiù suǒxìng bāng dàodǐ. [Pinyin]

   Since we've already helped him out, we might as well help until the job is done.

Synonyms

• (finally):

(deprecated template usage)

• 到尾 (Eastern Min)
• 卒之 (zeot¹ zi¹) (Cantonese)
• 始終／始终 (shǐzhōng)
• 算是 (suànshì)
• 終／终 (zhōng) (literary, or in compounds)
• 終久／终久 (zhōngjiǔ)
• 終於／终于 (zhōngyú)
• 終歸／终归 (zhōngguī)
• 終究／终究 (zhōngjiū)
• 終須／终须 (zung¹ seoi¹) (Cantonese)
• 總是／总是 (zǒngshì)
• 總歸／总归 (zǒngguī)
• 總算／总算 (zǒngsuàn)
• 高低 (gāodī)

 

References

• (Min Nan) “Entry #3656”, in 臺灣閩南語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwan Minnan] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2023.

(deprecated template usage)

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Japanese

Kanji in this term
到	底
とう Grade: S	てい Grade: 4
on’yomi

Adverb

到(とう)底(てい) or 到底(adverb) • (tōtei or adverb) [[Category:Japanese
|とうてい]]

1. absolutely, (with negative verb) possibly (as in "couldn't possibly"), utterly
   • 1908, 夏目漱石 (Natsume Sōseki), 夢十夜 (Ten nights of dreams), [1]

     とうてい死(し)にそうには見(み)えない。

     Tōtei shinisō ni wa mienai.

     It didn't appear possible that [she] was about to die.

References

• 2002, Ineko Kondō; Fumi Takano; Mary E Althaus; et. al., Shogakukan Progressive Japanese-English Dictionary, Third Edition, Tokyo: Shōgakukan, →ISBN.