騎 meaning and stroke order
To ride, to mount; cavalry
How to write 騎, stroke by stroke
18 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 騎
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (Tw) saddle horse
- mounted soldier
- to sit astride
- to ride (a horse, bike etc)
- classifier for saddle horses
How 騎 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Horse.
馬 gives the meaning and 奇 hints at the sound.
Radical: 馬 (horse), shared by 47 characters on this site.
How to remember 騎
On the left is 馬 (mǎ), a horse, which gives the meaning. On the right is 奇 (qí), which gives the sound, so picture yourself sitting on a horse and saying "qí" as you ride.
騎 (qí) is the verb for riding anything you sit astride, such as a horse, bicycle, or motorbike. It appears in words like 騎馬 (qímǎ, to ride a horse) and 騎兵 (qíbīng, cavalry). Example: 我每天騎車上班。(Wǒ měitiān qí chē shàngbān.) I ride my bike to work every day.
Common mistake: Learners often use 坐 (zuò) for bikes and horses, but 坐 is for sitting inside or on transport like buses, cars, and trains, while 騎 is for things you straddle. Also, do not confuse 騎 with 椅 (yǐ, chair) or 寄 (jì, to mail), which share the 奇 part but have different meanings.
Common words with 騎
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 騎車 | qí chē | to ride a bike (motorbike or bicycle) | HSK 2 |
| 騎士 | qíshì | knight; cavalier; (Tw) bike rider (scooter, bicycle etc) | |
| 騎馬 | qímǎ | to ride a horse | |
| 騎兵 | qíbīng | cavalry | |
| 騎手 | qíshǒu | horse rider; equestrian | |
| 騎師 | qíshī | jockey; horse rider | |
| 騎警 | qíjǐng | mounted police (on horse or motorbike) | |
| 坐騎 | zuòqí | saddle horse; mount |
Questions about 騎
How many strokes are in 騎?
騎 is written with 18 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 騎 mean?
騎 (qí) means to ride, to mount; cavalry. A common word with it is 骑车 (qí chē), meaning "to ride a bike (motorbike or bicycle)".
How do you pronounce 騎?
騎 is pronounced qí, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 騎?
The radical of 騎 is 馬, which carries the idea of "horse". Dictionaries list 騎 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 騎?
騎 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 骑, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Why is 騎 sometimes read jì?
In Taiwan the reading jì is used for the noun senses, meaning a saddle horse or a mounted soldier. In mainland standard Mandarin, qí is used for all senses, including 坐騎 (zuòqí).
Can 騎 be used for an electric scooter or motorcycle?
Yes. Any two-wheeled vehicle you sit astride takes 騎, so you say 騎摩托車 (qí mótuōchē) for a motorcycle and 騎電動車 (qí diàndòngchē) for an e-bike.