Meaning
older sister
Chinese: 年长的、姐妹。
Hear the Four Tones
The same syllable “jie” becomes a different word in each tone. 姐 is the 3rd 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
- 姐姐jiě jieolder sister
- 小姐xiǎo jieyoung lady; miss; (slang) prostitute
- 姐妹jiě mèisisters; siblings; sister (school, city etc)
- 大姐dà jiěbig sister; elder sister; older sister (also polite term of address for a girl or woman slightly older than the speaker)
- 的姐dī jiěfemale taxi driver
Example Sentence
我姐姐在大学读书。Wǒ jiě jie zài dà xué dú shū.My older sister studies at university.
我WǒI姐姐jiě jieolder sister在zàiat大学dà xuéuniversity读书dú shūto read a book。
Go deeper
Where this character comes from
A woman (女) plus 且, which gives the sound. It means ‘elder sister’.
A way to remember it
Woman + 且 — an elder sister.
Easy to confuse with
- 妹‘Younger sister’: also a woman radical, but paired with 未, not 且.