冀 meaning and stroke order
To hope for; to wish; Hebei province
How to write 冀, stroke by stroke
16 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 冀
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (literary) to hope for
How 冀 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. North.
北 gives the meaning and 異 hints at the sound.
Radical: 八 (eight), shared by 11 characters on this site.
How to remember 冀
冀 (jì) puts 北 (běi, north) on top of 異 (yì), which gives the sound. Picture people in the north hoping for something different, and remember that 冀 is also the short name for Hebei, a northern province.
Today 冀 is most common as the one-character abbreviation for Hebei province, seen on license plates and in names like 京津冀 (Jīng Jīn Jì, the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region). The meaning "to hope for" survives mainly in formal words like 希冀 (xījì, to hope) and 冀望 (jìwàng, to hope for). Example: 我的车牌是冀A开头的。(Wǒ de chēpái shì Jì A kāitóu de.) My license plate starts with Ji A.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 冀 with 翼 (yì, wing), which has 羽 on top instead of 北. Remember that north 北 sits over Hebei's 冀, and feathers 羽 sit over a wing.
Questions about 冀
How many strokes are in 冀?
冀 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 冀 mean?
冀 (jì) means to hope for; to wish; Hebei province.
How do you pronounce 冀?
冀 is pronounced jì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 冀?
The radical of 冀 is 八, which carries the idea of "eight". Dictionaries list 冀 under this radical.
Can I use 冀 in everyday speech to say I hope?
Not really. In daily conversation people say 希望 (xīwàng) or 盼望 (pànwàng). 冀 and 冀望 sound literary and appear mostly in formal writing.
Why is Hebei called 冀?
冀州 (Jìzhōu) was the name of one of the nine ancient provinces of China, and it covered much of today's Hebei. The modern abbreviation comes from that old name.