他 meaning in English
(third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his; (bound form) other; another; some other (as in 他日[ta1 ri4] and 他人[ta1 ren2])
Meaning of 他
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- (third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his
- (bound form) other; another; some other (as in 他日[ta1 ri4] and 他人[ta1 ren2])
How to use 他
他 is the everyday word for he, him, and his when used before a noun or with 的. Add 们 to make the plural 他们 (tāmen), they. Example: 他是我的朋友。(Tā shì wǒ de péngyou.) He is my friend.
他 has the person radical 亻 on the left and 也 (yě) on the right. Think of it as "also a person": someone other than you and me, so he or him.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 他 (he) with 她 (she) and 它 (it), which are all pronounced tā. In writing, use the 女 radical in 她 for women, 宀 in 它 for things and animals, and 亻 in 他 for men.
他 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
他 tā · he · 5 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 他.
| 他们 | tāmen | they; them |
| 其他 | qítā | other; (sth or sb) else |
| 他人 | tārén | another person; sb else; other people |
| 吉他 | jítā | (loanword) guitar |
| 他妈的 | tāmāde | (taboo curse) damn it!; fucking |
| 他杀 | tāshā | homicide (law) |
| 他用 | tāyòng | other use; other purpose |
| 维他命 | wéitāmìng | (loanword) vitamin |
| 吉他手 | jítāshǒu | guitarist |
| 别无他法 | biéwútāfǎ | there is no alternative |
| 安非他命 | ānfēitāmìng | amphetamine (medical) (loanword) |
Questions about 他
What does 他 mean?
他 (tā) means "(third-person singular) (since the early 20th century, usu. male) he; him; his; (bound form) other; another; some other (as in 他日[ta1 ri4] and 他人[ta1 ren2])" and is used as a pronoun.
How do you write 他?
他 is made of 1 character: 他 (5 strokes). That is 5 strokes in total.
Is 他 an HSK word?
Yes. 他 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do you know if tā means he or she when listening?
In speech you cannot tell, because 他 and 她 sound exactly the same. Chinese speakers rely on context, such as a name mentioned earlier. The written difference only appeared in the early 20th century.
Why is 他 in the word for guitar, 吉他?
吉他 (jítā) is a loanword chosen for its sound, not its meaning. Here 他 just represents the syllable tā and has nothing to do with he. The same is true of 其他 (qítā), where 他 keeps its older sense of other.