HanziGuru.剂 · jì
剂
jì[ji4]Tone 4

dose, preparation, medicine compound

HSK 7
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劑
Guru Deep Dive

English · dose, preparation, medicine compound

Cached lesson
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Topology:Left-right
Strokes:8
Writing Balance Rule: The left side (齐) should be slightly narrower to leave ample room for the right side (刀, knife), ensuring the whole character remains compact and balanced.
Simplification Logic: The traditional form 劑 uses 齊 as the left component and 刀 as the right component. In the simplified form 剂, the complex top-left elements of 齊 are simplified while retaining the core phonetic-semantic structure.
1. Meaning

a compound made by mixing ingredients, especially a medicinal or chemical product, or a dose of medicine

small piece of dough cut from a rolled log for making dumplings
Bound Form / ClassifierFormalBound morpheme#medicine#chemistry#cooking
Sample Usage
  • 这味药一次吃一剂。
    Zhè wèi yào yī cì chī yī jì.
    Take one dose of this medicine at a time.
  • 眼药水是一种药剂。
    Yǎnyàoshuǐ shì yī zhǒng yàojì.
    Eye drops are a type of liquid medication.
2. Sound
/[t͡ɕi⁵¹]/Tone: 51
剂
jìji4
++
`(51)
=jì
Build the syllable
Step-by-step blending
ji
Tone mark placement: Tone mark sits on "i" per main-vowel priority (a > e > o; in -iu/-ui the mark takes the second vowel).
Initial Consonant
j
Type: Unaspirated Alveolo-Palatal
Sounds like: j like the sound in 'jeep' but unvoiced and unreleased
Unaspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: No air puff. Lips spread wide like smiling.
Tongue & Mouth Position: Front of the tongue pressed against the hard palate, releasing gently without a burst of breath.
Final Rhyme
i
Vowel Group: -i vowel group
Sounds like: ee sound as in 'see'
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ee'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T4 (51)
4th Tone (High-Falling)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 4 starts high and plunges straight down, exactly like shouting 'No!' or giving a sharp command in English.
👂
Listening trap: Confusing the falling tone (Tone 4, jì) with the rising tone (Tone 2, jí), or mispronouncing the initial 'j' as a soft English 'dz' instead of the crisp palatal affricate.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: A sharp, definitive karate chop downwards from head height to chest level, matching the abrupt fall of Tone 4.
3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 8 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (齐) should be slightly narrower to leave ample room for the right side (刀, knife), ensuring the whole character remains compact and balanced.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 劑 uses 齊 as the left component and 刀 as the right component. In the simplified form 剂, the complex top-left elements of 齊 are simplified while retaining the core phonetic-semantic structure.

4. Components

Radical 刂 · Knife Radical (knife, cutting, slicing)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 刀 (Indicates cutting or dividing into portions (as in cutting dough or dividing medicine doses))

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 齐 (original sound: qí)

The phonetic component 齐 (neat, even) provides the sound 'ji', while the knife radical 刂 on the right signifies slicing or portioning ingredients evenly into precise doses.

  • 齐 Provides the phonetic sound 'ji' and the idea of uniformity
  • 刂 Adds the semantic meaning of cutting or portioning with a knife
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally formed to represent the action of cutting something into equal portions using a knife (刀), combined with a phonetic element representing order and uniformity (齐). Over time, it specialized into measuring medical concoctions and recipes.

Semantic Evolution: From the physical act of cutting dough or medicine ingredients into equal portions to mean a measured portion, dose, or chemical formulation.

  • Traditional herbal medicine in China required precise cutting and portioning, linking the knife radical directly to pharmacy.
6. Sinosphere
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: ザイ
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
제
Sound Shift Bridge: Shared ancient Chinese roots appear in Japanese On'yomi reading 'zai' for related medical compounds.
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story

To make a precise medical **dose** (jì), the pharmacist uses a sharp **knife** (刂) to evenly slice the ingredients until they are completely **neat and uniform** (齐).

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
齐
qíneat, even, levelPhonetic Core (声旁)
济
jǐto cross a river, aid, relieve, or help+ 氵 (water)
挤
jǐto squeeze / to crowd+ 扌 (hand)
侪
cháia class; a company+ 亻 (person)
Explore this family →
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
挤(jǐ)
挤 has the hand radical (扌) for squeezing with hands; 剂 has the knife radical (刂) for cutting doses.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
医生给我开了一___中药。
Clue: jì
Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the classifier 剂 with other measure words like 副 (fù) or贴 (tiē) when talking about doses of medicine.

Memory Prompts
Recognition: What does the character 剂 mean when combined with 药 (yào) to form 药剂?
Production: How do you write the character for a medicine 'dose' (jì), which features the knife radical on the right?
Real-World Video Context

Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.

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