妓 meaning and stroke order
Prostitute
How to write 妓, stroke by stroke
7 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 妓
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- prostitute
How 妓 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A working 支 woman 女; 支 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 女 (woman), shared by 156 characters on this site.
How to remember 妓
The left side is 女 (nǚ, woman) and the right side is 支 (zhī), which the etymology hint reads as "working." A working woman gives 妓, and 支 also hints at the sound jì.
妓 almost never appears alone in modern Chinese. It shows up in compounds such as 妓女 (jìnǚ, prostitute) and 妓院 (jìyuàn, brothel). Example: 这条街以前有很多妓院。(Zhè tiáo jiē yǐqián yǒu hěn duō jìyuàn.) This street used to have many brothels.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 妓 with 技 (jì, skill), which has the same sound and the same 支 part but uses the hand radical 扌. Writing 技术 (jìshù, technology) with 女 instead of 扌 is an embarrassing error, so check the left side.
Common words with 妓
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
妓 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 妓
How many strokes are in 妓?
妓 is written with 7 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 妓 mean?
妓 (jì) means prostitute. A common word with it is 妓女 (jìnǚ), meaning "prostitute; hooker".
How do you pronounce 妓?
妓 is pronounced jì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 妓?
The radical of 妓 is 女, which carries the idea of "woman". Dictionaries list 妓 under this radical.
Is 妓女 a polite word to use?
妓女 is the standard neutral term found in news and books, but it still sounds blunt in conversation. Modern media and NGOs sometimes use 性工作者 (xìng gōngzuòzhě, sex worker) as a more neutral alternative.
Did 妓 always mean prostitute?
In older Chinese, 妓 could also refer to female entertainers who sang or danced. That older sense survives in words like 艺妓 (yìjì, geisha), which describes a Japanese entertainer rather than a prostitute.