Meaning of 北极
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- the North Pole
- the north magnetic pole
How to use 北极
北极 is used for the North Pole and the Arctic region in general, so it appears in talk about geography, climate and animals. It also shows up in names like 北极熊 (běijíxióng, polar bear). Example: 北极熊生活在北极。(Běijíxióng shēnghuó zài běijí.) Polar bears live in the Arctic.
北 (běi) means north, and 极 (jí) means the extreme point or pole. Put them together and you get the most northern point there is: the North Pole.
Common mistake: Learners often write 极 as 级 (jí, level or grade), since they sound the same and both are common in HSK words. Remember that 极 has the wood radical 木, while 级 has the silk radical 纟.
北极 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.
北 běi · north · 5 strokes
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极 jí · extremely · 7 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 北极.
| 北京 | Běijīng | Beijing municipality, capital of the People's Republic of China (short name 京[Jing1]) |
| 北边 | běibian | north; north side |
| 北方 | běifāng | north; the northern part a country |
| 西北 | xīběi | northwest |
| 东北 | dōngběi | northeast |
| 极了 | jí le | extremely; exceedingly |
| 北部 | běibù | northern part |
| 积极 | jījí | active; energetic |
| 积极性 | jījíxìng | zeal; initiative |
| 极其 | jíqí | extremely |
| 南极 | nánjí | the South Pole; the south magnetic pole |
| 消极 | xiāojí | negative; passive |
Questions about 北极
What does 北极 mean?
北极 (běijí) means "the North Pole; the north magnetic pole" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 北极?
北极 is made of 2 characters: 北 (5 strokes), 极 (7 strokes). That is 12 strokes in total.
Is 北极 an HSK word?
Yes. 北极 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 北极 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 北极 is written 北極.
How do you say the South Pole in Chinese?
The South Pole is 南极 (nánjí), using 南 (nán, south) with the same 极. Antarctica is 南极洲 (Nánjízhōu).
Is 极 in 北极 the same 极 as in 极了 (jí le)?
Yes, it is the same character. Its core idea is an extreme or farthest point, so 好极了 (hǎo jí le) means good to the extreme, and 北极 means the extreme north.