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刺激 meaning in English

cìjī

to provoke; to irritate; to upset; to stimulate; to excite; irritant

HSK 4verbnoun24 strokes

Meaning of 刺激

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

cìjī
  1. to provoke; to irritate; to upset; to stimulate; to excite
  2. irritant

How to use 刺激

刺激 works as a verb (to stimulate, to provoke, to upset) and as a noun (a stimulus). In casual speech it is also used as an adjective for something thrilling, like a roller coaster or an action movie. Example: 过山车太刺激了。(Guòshānchē tài cìjī le.) The roller coaster is so thrilling.

刺 (cì) means to stab or prick, and 激 (jī) means to stir up, like water splashing hard. Something that pricks you and stirs you up is 刺激: it stimulates, excites, or irritates.

Common mistake: Learners often confuse 刺激 with 激动 (jīdòng). 激动 describes a person feeling emotionally moved or agitated, while 刺激 describes something that stimulates or provokes, so say 这部电影很刺激 (thrilling movie) but 我很激动 (I am excited).

刺激 in example sentences

Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.

你nǐ今jīn年nián做zuò的de最zuì刺cì激jī的de事shì是shì什shén么me？
What's the most exciting thing you've done this year?
减jiǎn税shuì常cháng被bèi用yòng作zuò刺cì激jī经jīng济jì的de主zhǔ要yào财cái政zhèng手shǒu段duàn。
Tax cuts are often used as a major fiscal tool to stimulate the economy.
更gèng多duō投tóu资zī在zài教jiào育yù的de钱qián将jiāng会huì刺cì激jī经jīng济jì成chéng长zhǎng。
More money for education will spur economic growth.
有yǒu些xiē人rén喜xǐ欢huān循xún规guī蹈dǎo矩jǔ，而ér有yǒu些xiē人rén总zǒng喜xǐ欢huān寻xún求qiú刺cì激jī。
Some people prefer conformity, while others seek novelty.
正zhèng如rú身shēn体tǐ需xū要yào锻duàn炼liàn，所suǒ以yǐ心xīn灵líng需xū要yào刺cì激jī才cái能néng保bǎo持chí健jiàn康kāng。
Just as the body needs exercise, so the mind needs stimulation to stay healthy.

Stroke order for each character

Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.

刺 cì · thorn · 8 strokes

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  2. 2
  3. 3
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激 jī · to arouse · 16 strokes

  1. 1
  2. 2
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Related words

Words that share a character with 刺激.

激动jīdòngto move emotionally; to stir up (emotions)
激烈jīliè(of competition or fighting) intense; fierce
激情jīqíngpassion; fervor
感激gǎnjīto be grateful; to appreciate
讽刺fěngcìto satirize; to mock
激活jīhuóto activate
激励jīlìto encourage; to urge
激光jīguānglaser
激发jīfāto arouse; to stimulate
激起jīqǐto arouse; to evoke
冲刺chōngcì(sports) to sprint; to spurt; to dash; to put in a big effort to achieve a goal as the dea
激素jīsùhormone

Questions about 刺激

What does 刺激 mean?

刺激 (cìjī) means "to provoke; to irritate; to upset; to stimulate; to excite; irritant" and is used as a verb and noun.

How do you write 刺激?

刺激 is made of 2 characters: 刺 (8 strokes), 激 (16 strokes). That is 24 strokes in total.

Is 刺激 an HSK word?

Yes. 刺激 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

Can 刺激 have a negative meaning?

Yes. It can mean to upset or provoke someone, as in 别刺激他 (bié cìjī tā), don't provoke him. It also describes irritants, like smoke that 刺激眼睛 (irritates the eyes).

Is 刺激 used in economics or science?

Yes. 刺激经济 (cìjī jīngjì) means to stimulate the economy, and in biology or psychology 刺激 is the standard word for a stimulus.

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