Definitions

diū (verb) to lose; to throw

Etymology

A horizontal line, depicting an item being discarded, added to the semantically similar character (leave; go).

About

The character 丢, derived from the traditional form 丟, is structurally composed of the horizontal stroke 一 above the character 去, meaning 'to go,' which conveys the idea of something departing or being dispatched. Its earliest recorded uses centered on the act of throwing or casting away, but over centuries, the semantic range broadened to include the sense of losing or misplacing objects unintentionally. This shift reflects a generalization from deliberate action to accidental occurrence, while the compositional elements have remained unchanged in both forms.

Example Sentences Hide

了一支笔。

Wǒ diū le yī zhī bǐ.

I lost a pen.

掉了旧书包。

Tā diū diào le jiù shū bāo.

He threw away his old backpack.

垃圾在地上。

Bié diū lā jī zài dì shàng.

Do not litter on the ground.

我昨天失了钱包。

Wǒ zuó tiān diū shī le qián bāo.

I lost my wallet yesterday.

这件事让他很脸。

Zhè jiàn shì ràng tā hěn diū liǎn.

This matter made him very embarrassed.

如果不小心,你会钥匙。

Rúguǒ bù xiǎoxīn, nǐ huì diū yàoshi.

If you are not careful, you will lose your keys.

我把手机在出租车上了。

Wǒ bǎ shǒujī diū zài chūzūchē shàng le.

I left my phone in the taxi.

这次失败不会让他掉信心。

Zhè cì shībài bù huì ràng tā diū diào xìnxīn.

This failure will not make him lose confidence.