Meaning
level; grade; rank; step
Chinese: 等级、级别或台阶。
Hear the Four Tones
The same syllable “ji” becomes a different word in each tone. 级 is the 2nd tone. Tap any tone to hear a native voice and see its pitch shape.
Stroke Order
Tap Animate to watch the strokes in order, or Practice to trace it yourself.
Common Words
- 高级gāo jíhigh level; high grade; advanced; high-ranking
- 年级nián jígrade; year (in school, college etc)
- 中级zhōng jímiddle level (in a hierarchy)
- 超级chāo jísuper-; ultra-; hyper-
- 初级chū jíjunior; primary
Example Sentence
我妹妹上小学三年级。Wǒ mèi mei shàng xiǎo xué sān nián jí.My younger sister is in the third grade of primary school.
我WǒI妹妹mèi meiyounger sister上shàngon小学xiǎo xuéelementary school三sānthree年级nián jígrade。
Go deeper
Where this character comes from
The silk radical 纟 plus 及 (sound): originally the order of silk threads — ‘a level, grade, rank; a class, year (年级); a step; the measure word for steps/grades’ (级别, 年级, 高级). Simplified from 級.
A way to remember it
‘A level / grade / class’: 年级 (school year), 高级 (advanced).