HanziGuru.纪 · jǐ
纪
jǐ[ji3]Tone 3

discipline, age, era, period, surname Ji

HSK 3
View Traditional FormSwitch to Traditional
紀
Multiple Readings (多音字):
Guru Deep Dive

English · discipline, age, era, period, surname Ji

Cached lesson
1 / 1
Topology:Left-right
Strokes:6
Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (纟) takes up about one-third of the width, leaving the remaining two-thirds for the right phonetic component (己), keeping both sides vertically balanced.
Simplification Logic: The traditional radical 糹 (silk) is simplified to 纟, following standard Chinese character simplification rules for thread-related radicals.
1. Meaning

discipline, order, record, historical era

age (e.g. geological era, lifespan)century or period of yearssurname Ji
Noun / Proper NounNeutral / LiteraryBound morpheme#time#history#order#surnames
Sample Usage
  • 世纪
    shìjì
    century
  • 纪律
    jìlǜ
    discipline
2. Sound
/[t͡ɕi²¹⁴]/Tone: 214
纪
jǐji3
++
ˇ(214)
=jǐ
Initial Consonant
j
Type: Unaspirated Alveolo-Palatal
Sounds like: j sound as in 'jeep'
Unaspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: No air puff. Lips spread wide like smiling.
Tongue & Mouth Position: Blade of the tongue touches or approaches the hard palate with a flat, soft release.
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
T3 (214)
3rd Tone (Low-Dipping)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 3 dips low and rises, similar to the incredulous English question tone 'Really?'
Sandhi: When followed by another Tone 3 syllable, changes to a Tone 2 (rising 35) syllable.
👂
Listening trap: Often confused with Tone 4 (jì) by beginners who rush the dipping contour.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: Trace a checkmark in the air: dip down from medium height to low, then sweep upward.
3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 6 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (纟) takes up about one-third of the width, leaving the remaining two-thirds for the right phonetic component (己), keeping both sides vertically balanced.

Simplification Logic: The traditional radical 糹 (silk) is simplified to 纟, following standard Chinese character simplification rules for thread-related radicals.

4. Components

Radical 纟 · Silk Radical (Silk, thread, fibers)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 纟 (Denotes silk threads, originally referring to the meticulous spinning and ordering of raw silk threads.)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 己 (original sound: jǐ)

Silk threads (纟) are carefully measured and marked out by oneself (己) to keep them organized and disciplined.

  • 纟 Silk thread radical
  • 己 Oneself / phonetic indicator
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally created as a phono-semantic compound where the silk radical (纟) relates to sorting and unraveling silk filaments, and 己 provides the sound.

Semantic Evolution: From unraveling and ordering silk threads, the meaning extended to putting things in order, recording historical events, keeping a chronological record, and establishing discipline.

  • Ancient Chinese historians used silk scrolls to record dynastic eras and chronological timelines.
6. Sinosphere
🇻🇳
Sino-Vietnamese
kỷ
Corresponds to the Vietnamese hỏi tone (dipping tone).
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: キ
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
기
Sound Shift Bridge: The initial 'j' in Mandarin often corresponds to palatalized stops or sibilants in older Sinitic borrowings.
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story

You pull on a single silk thread (纟) all by yourself (己) to maintain strict DISCIPLINE and keep your life in order.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
记
jìto record, to rememberUses the speech radical (讠) instead of silk, meaning words recorded in memory.
配
pèito match, to fitUses the wine jar radical (酉) on the left.
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
己(jǐ)
己 means 'oneself' and lacks the silk radical on the left.
已(yǐ)
已 means 'already' and its vertical stroke goes all the way through without stopping.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
我们已经进入了二十一[___]。
Clue: shì jì
Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the third tone jǐ with the fourth tone jì, or mixing up the right side component with 己 and 已.

Memory Prompts
Recognition: When you see 纪 with 纟 and 己, what tone and primary meanings come to mind?
Production: How do you write the character for 'discipline or era' (jǐ) using the silk radical and 'oneself'?
Real-World Video Context

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

Search theme
Accent preference

Results are live YouTube search — accents and levels aren't verified.

纪jǐdiscipline, age, era, period, surname Ji
Speed:
Searching YouTube for native pronunciation videos...
0 / 0
Watch on YouTubeMore Results on YouTube