气 (qì) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

气

qì[qi4]Tone 4

gas, air, breath, spirit

HSK 1

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氣

Guru Deep Dive

English · gas, air, breath, spirit

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Topology:Single character

Strokes:4

Writing Balance Rule: Write the top horizontal and slanted strokes first, finishing with the sweeping horizontal base that ties the floating vapor tendrils together.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 氣 contains the rice radical (米) inside, symbolizing steam rising from cooking rice. The simplified form 气 reduces the interior to three simple flowing strokes representing drifting vapors.

1. Meaning

Air, gas, or vapor

Smell or odorWeather or meteorological conditionVital energy or life force (qi)Anger or vexation

Noun / VerbNeutral#elements#nature#body#emotions

Sample Usage

今天天气很好。
jīntiān tiānqì hěn hǎo.
Today the weather is very good.
别生他的气。
bié shēng tā de qì.
Don't be angry with him.

2. Sound

/[t͡ɕʰi˥˩]/Tone: 51

气

qìqi4

`(51)

=qì

Initial Consonant

Type: Aspirated Alveolo-Palatal

Sounds like: ch sound produced with blade of tongue near hard palate

Aspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: Extremely strong burst of breath! Tissue held before mouth MUST fly.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Blade of tongue close to the hard palate, releasing a sharp jet of air.

Final Rhyme

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)

5 → 1 (51)

4th Tone (High-Falling)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 4 starts high and plunges sharply down, exactly like an emphatic English command: 'STOP!' or 'NO!'

👂

Listening trap: Confusing it with Tone 1 (qī) or Tone 2 (qí). Remember that Tone 4 starts high and drops abruptly.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: A swift karate chop downward from high to low, mirroring the sharp drop of Tone 4.

3. Writing

Topology: Single character · Strokes: 4 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: Write the top horizontal and slanted strokes first, finishing with the sweeping horizontal base that ties the floating vapor tendrils together.

4. Components

Radical 气 · Air / Steam Radical (vapors, gas, breath)

The character depicts wisps of steam or air rising into the sky, capturing the essence of invisible gas or breath.

𠄎 floating clouds or steam
一 ground or horizon line

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

2· Phonetic Root: 气 (qì)

5. History

Liushu category: Pictogram (象形)

Origin: In Oracle Bone scripts, 气 was originally drawn as three wavy horizontal lines representing curling clouds or flowing air in the atmosphere.

Semantic Evolution: Originally representing clouds and vapor in the sky, it extended to mean breath, living energy in the body, weather, and eventually psychological states like anger.

In traditional Chinese philosophy, Qi (气) is considered the fundamental vital energy constituting the universe and living beings.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: キ (ki) / ケ (ke)

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

기

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine wisps of steam rising from a hot bowl of rice cooking on the stove. That visible steam is the 'qi' (gas, air, and vital energy) floating up into the air.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

汽

qìsteam, vaporAdd water (氵) to qi to get steam/water vapor.

汽车

qìchēcar, automobileGas-powered vehicle.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

米(mǐ)

米 means rice and has crossing diagonal strokes inside, whereas 气 represents flowing vapor with horizontal sweeping strokes.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

今天外面的[___]很好，适合去公园散步。

Clue: tiān qì

Common Learner Pitfall

Forgetting that the simplified version 气 has only 4 strokes and mistaking it for 米 (rice) or mixing up its Tone 4 contour with a rising tone.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: When you see the 4-stroke vapor character 气, what is its primary meaning and Pinyin?

Production: How do you write the character for 'air / gas / weather' with Pinyin qì?

气qìgas, air, breath, spirit

Speed:

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