Usage note
“天”可以用来指代白天或天空。
tiān kě yǐ lái yòng zài zhǐ dài zhòu wǎn huò tiān qún.
"天" can be used to refer to the day or sky.
Context note
“天”常用于描述天气、时间或自然景象。
tiān cháng yòng yú miáo huì tǐtài, shí jiān huò zìrán jǐngxiàng.
"天" is commonly used to describe weather, time or natural scenery.
5 examples
今天天气真好。
jīn tiān tiān qì zhēn hǎo。
The weather today is really nice.
我们一起去公园玩吧，天很蓝。
wǒ men yì qǐ qù gōng yuán wán ba， tiān hěn lán。
Let's go to the park together, the sky is very blue.
他每天早上跑步。
tā měi tiān zǎo shàng pǎo bù。
He runs every morning.
今天是星期天，我们可以休息一下。
jīn tiān shì xīng qī tiān， wǒ men kě yǐ xiū xi yí xià。
Today is Sunday, we can take a rest.
天空中有许多云朵。
tiān kōng zhōng yǒu xǔ duō yún duǒ。
There are many clouds in the sky.
5 mini stories
早上起来，我看到天很蓝。妈妈说今天是个好天气。
zǎo shàng qǐ lái， wǒ kàn dào tiān hěn lán。 mā ma shuō jīn tiān shì gè hǎo tiān qì。
In the morning, I saw that the sky was very blue. Mom said it's a nice day today.
昨天晚上我们看星星，爸爸说天黑了。
zuó tiān wǎn shàng wǒ men kàn xīng xīng， bà ba shuō tiān hēi le。
Last night we watched the stars, Dad said it got dark.
春天的时候，我们可以去公园放风筝，享受美好的天空。
chūn tiān de shí hòu， wǒ men kě yǐ qù gōng yuán fàng fēng zheng， xiǎng shòu měi hǎo de tiān kōng。
In spring, we can go to the park to fly kites and enjoy the beautiful sky.
夏天的天很热，我们可以在树荫下乘凉。
xià tiān de tiān hěn rè， wǒ men kě yǐ zài shù yīn xià chéng liáng。
The sky is very hot in summer, we can cool off under the trees.
晚上睡觉前，我常常看窗外的天空。
wǎn shàng shuì jiào qián， wǒ cháng cháng kàn chuāng wài de tiān kōng。
Before going to bed at night, I often look at the sky outside the window.
Mini dialogue
今天星期几？
A
今天星期几？
Jīntiān xīngqī jǐ?
What day is it today?
B
今天是星期一。
Jīntiān shì xīngqī yī.
Today is Monday.
天很蓝
A
你看，天很蓝。
Nǐ kàn, tiān hěn lán.
Look, the sky is very blue.
B
是啊，天气真好。
Shì a, tiānqì zhēn hǎo.
Yes, the weather is really nice.
Related words and contrasts
similar
天空
tiānkōng
sky
天 can mean sky, and 天空 is a more specific word for the sky.
similar
日
rì
day; sun
天 can mean day, and 日 also means day or sun, often used in formal words.
opposite
夜
yè
night
天 (day) is the opposite of 夜 (night).