妻 meaning and stroke order
Wife
How to write 妻, stroke by stroke
8 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 妻
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (bound form) wife
- to marry off (a daughter)
How 妻 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A woman 女 holding a broom 十 in her hand 彐.
Radical: 女 (woman), shared by 156 characters on this site.
How to remember 妻
The etymology hint shows a woman 女 at the bottom with a hand 彐 holding a broom 十 above her. Picture the woman of the house holding a broom, and you have 妻 (qī), wife.
妻 is a bound form, so it usually appears inside words like 妻子 (qīzi), 夫妻 (fūqī), and 前妻 (qiánqī) rather than standing alone. Example: 他们是一对老夫妻。(Tāmen shì yí duì lǎo fūqī.) They are an old married couple.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 妻 with 凄 (qī, desolate) and 栖 (qī, to perch), which share the same sound. Also note that 妻子 (qīzi) with a neutral tone on 子 means wife, while the older reading 妻子 (qīzǐ) means wife and children.
Common words with 妻
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
妻 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 妻
Learning 妻 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 妻
How many strokes are in 妻?
妻 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 妻 mean?
妻 (qī) means wife. A common word with it is 妻子 (qīzi), meaning "wife and children".
How do you pronounce 妻?
妻 is pronounced qī, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 妻?
The radical of 妻 is 女, which carries the idea of "woman". Dictionaries list 妻 under this radical.
Is 妻 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 妻 is part of the HSK 4 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
What is the difference between 妻子 and 老婆?
妻子 (qīzi) is neutral and works in writing and polite speech. 老婆 (lǎopo) is casual and common when a husband talks about his own wife among friends.
Is 妻 ever pronounced qì?
Yes, in the rare classical sense of marrying off a daughter, 妻 is read qì. In modern everyday Chinese you will almost always say qī.