Learn a Chinese Character - 几

1. Character Basics

Radical: 几 (jī radical, itself, radical number 16)

Stroke Count: 2

Stroke Order:

2. Pronunciation

Pinyin: jǐ (question word meaning "how many") / jī (meaning "small table")

3. Meaning

several, few, how many, small table

4. Common Words

• 几个 (jǐ gè) - several, a few
• 几乎 (jī hū) - almost, nearly
• 几何 (jǐ hé) - geometry, how many
• 茶几 (chá jī) - tea table
• 几乎不 (jī hū bù) - hardly, almost not
• 几天 (jǐ tiān) - a few days

5. Grammar & Usage

1. As jǐ (interrogative): Used to ask about quantity, similar to "how many" in English

2. As jǐ (indefinite): Used to indicate an approximate or small quantity

3. As jī: Used in compounds referring to small furniture items like 茶几 (tea table)

4. Note that when used as "almost" (几乎), it's pronounced jī, not jǐ

6. Cultural Background

The character 几 has a long history, originally meaning a small low table used for放置物品 in ancient Chinese homes. Over time, it also developed the meaning of "how many" or "several," becoming one of the most common question words in Chinese.

7. Example Sentence

8. Memory Tips

The character 几 has only 2 strokes, making it one of the simplest Chinese characters. Its shape resembles a small table (one of its meanings), with the horizontal line representing the tabletop and the vertical curve representing the legs. Remember its dual pronunciation and meanings: jǐ for quantity questions, jī for tables and "almost."