dōng tiān
winter
冬天到了，天气变冷了。
Dōngtiān dàole, tiānqì biàn lěngle.
Winter has come, and the weather has turned cold.
冬天里，人们喜欢吃火锅。
Dōngtiān lǐ, rénmen xǐhuan chī huǒguō.
In the winter, people like to eat hot pot.
冬天的时候，我经常去滑雪。
Dōngtiān de shíhou, wǒ jīngcháng qù huáxuě.
In the winter, I often go skiing.
寒冬 (hán dōng)
cold winter
隆冬 (lóng dōng)
midwinter
夏天 (xiàtiān)
summer
春天 (chūntiān)
spring
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The Chinese word 冬天 (dōngtiān) for "winter" is composed of two characters: 冬 (dōng) and 天 (tiān). The character 冬 originally meant "to freeze" or "to congeal", and it is often used in words related to cold weather, such as 冬天 (winter), 冬至 (winter solstice), and 冬眠 (hibernation). The character 天 originally meant "sky" or "heaven", and it is often used in words related to time, such as 今天 (today), 明天 (tomorrow), and 昨天 (yesterday). When combined, the two characters 冬天 literally mean "frozen sky", which is a fitting description for the cold and often snowy weather of winter.
