距

• Pinyin: jù
• Hanzi breakdown: 距 = 足 (foot/distance) + 巨 (enormous — phonetic component)

Meaning

To be (a distance) from; to be apart from. Indicates spatial or temporal separation between two points.

Functions as both a preposition and verb. Used in formal and written Chinese to express measurable distance or time remaining before an event. More precise and literary than 离 in formal contexts; both are acceptable in everyday usage.

Examples

1. 比赛开幕距现在还有整整三个月，运动员们必须抓紧时间强化各项专项训练。 The opening of the competition is still three full months away, so the athletes must step up their specialized training.
2. 这座古城距最近的国际机场约有四百公里，交通便利性较为有限。 This ancient city is about 400 kilometers from the nearest international airport, so transportation convenience is fairly limited.
3. 距上次地震已过去了整整十年，当地的重建工作终于全面完成。 It has been a full ten years since the last earthquake, and the local reconstruction work has finally been fully completed.

Usage Guide

Context: navigation, time expressions, formal writing

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 该村距县城约十五公里，村民日常出行主要依赖班车和摩托车。(The village is about fifteen kilometres from the county town, and villagers rely mainly on scheduled buses and motorcycles for daily travel.)
• 距春节还有不到一个月的时间，各大商场已经提前布置起了喜庆的节日装饰。(With less than a month until the Spring Festival, major shopping centres have already put up festive decorations in advance.)

Don't Say

• 距我的家 — the correct pattern is 距+place+distance or 距+event+time; the structure 距我的家 is incomplete without a measured quantity following

Origin & History

Single character: 距 = 足 + 巨 (distance from/away)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal