Meaning of 四
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- four
- 4
How to use 四
四 is the everyday word for the number four and appears in dates, prices, phone numbers, and words about all directions, like 四周 (sìzhōu) and 四处 (sìchù). Example: 我有四本书。(Wǒ yǒu sì běn shū.) I have four books.
四 (sì) looks like a box with four sides. Inside are two little strokes, so picture a square room with four walls to remember the number four.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 四 (sì, four) with 十 (shí, ten), since sì and shí sound close, especially for speakers of southern dialects. Keep sì flat and falling with a dental s, and shí rising with a retroflex sh.
四 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.
四 sì · four · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Related words
Words that share a character with 四.
| 四周 | sìzhōu | all around |
| 四处 | sìchù | all over the place; everywhere and all directions |
| 四季 | sìjì | four seasons, namely: spring 春[chun1], summer 夏[xia4], autumn 秋[qiu1] and winter 冬[dong1] |
| 四面八方 | sìmiàn-bāfāng | (idiom) all directions; all around |
| 四合院 | sìhéyuàn | courtyard house with a fully enclosed courtyard (type of Chinese residence) |
| 朝三暮四 | zhāosān-mùsì | lit. say three in the morning but four in the evening (idiom); to change sth that is alrea |
| 四十 | sìshí | forty; 40 |
| 第四季 | dìsìjì | fourth quarter |
| 四次 | sìcì | fourth; four times |
| 十四 | shísì | fourteen; 14 |
| 四分之一 | sìfēnzhīyī | one-quarter |
| 四肢 | sìzhī | the four limbs of the body |
Questions about 四
What does 四 mean?
四 (sì) means "four; 4" and is used as a numeral.
How do you write 四?
四 is made of 1 character: 四 (5 strokes). That is 5 strokes in total.
Is 四 an HSK word?
Yes. 四 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
Why do some Chinese people avoid the number 4?
四 (sì) sounds similar to 死 (sǐ), which means to die. Because of this, some buildings skip the fourth floor and people may avoid phone numbers or license plates with many 4s.
What does 朝三暮四 mean in everyday speech?
Literally it means three in the morning and four in the evening. Today people mostly use it to describe someone who keeps changing their mind or is not loyal or consistent.