席 meaning and stroke order
Woven mat; seat; banquet
How to write 席, stroke by stroke
10 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 席
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- woven mat
- seat
- banquet
- place in a democratic assembly
- classifier for banquets, conversations etc
- woven mat (variant of 席[xi2])
How 席 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A cloth 巾 or straw 艹 mat in the house 广.
Radical: 巾 (cloth), shared by 53 characters on this site.
How to remember 席
Under the roof 广 of a house, a piece of cloth 巾 is laid out with a woven top 廿, like a straw mat spread on the floor. That mat is where you sit, so 席 (xí) means a seat or place.
席 often appears in formal words about seats and attendance, such as 出席 (chūxí) to attend and 缺席 (quēxí) to be absent. It also works as a classifier for banquets and talks. Example: 他今天没有出席会议。(Tā jīntiān méiyǒu chūxí huìyì.) He did not attend the meeting today.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 席 (xí) with 度 (dù), which also sits under 广 with 廿, but 度 ends in 又 while 席 ends in 巾. Also keep the second tone in 主席 (zhǔxí), not xì.
Common words with 席
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 主席 | zhǔxí | chairperson; premier | HSK 4 |
| 出席 | chūxí | to attend; to participate | HSK 4 |
| 首席 | shǒuxí | seat of honor; chief (representative, correspondent etc) | HSK 6 |
| 缺席 | quēxí | to be absent | HSK 7-9 |
| 席位 | xíwèi | a seat (in a theater, stadium etc); parliamentary or congressional seat | HSK 7-9 |
| 席卷 | xíjuǎn | to engulf; to sweep | |
| 一席之地 | yīxízhīdì | (acknowledged) place; a role to play | |
| 证人席 | zhèngrénxí | witness stand or box | |
| 观众席 | guānzhòngxí | audience seating area | |
| 酒席 | jiǔxí | feast; banquet |
席 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 席
How many strokes are in 席?
席 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 席 mean?
席 (xí) means woven mat; seat; banquet. A common word with it is 主席 (zhǔxí), meaning "chairperson; premier".
How do you pronounce 席?
席 is pronounced xí, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 席?
The radical of 席 is 巾, which carries the idea of "cloth". Dictionaries list 席 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 席?
The traditional form of 席 is 蓆. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 席 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 席 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 席 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 3.
What is the difference between 席 and 座 for seat?
座 (zuò) is the everyday word for a physical seat, as in 座位 (zuòwèi). 席 sounds more formal and is used for official places like 席位 (xíwèi) in a parliament or 证人席 (zhèngrénxí) the witness stand.
How is 席 used as a measure word?
It counts banquets and conversations, for example 一席酒 (yī xí jiǔ) a banquet and 一席话 (yī xí huà) a talk. 一席话 usually suggests a meaningful or memorable conversation.