Meaning
nine; 9
Chinese: 数字九。
Hear the Four Tones
The same syllable “jiu” becomes a different word in each tone. 九 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
- 九成jiǔ chéngnine-tenths; ninety percent
- 九天jiǔ tiānthe ninth heaven; the highest of the heavens
- 九十jiǔ shíninety
- 十九shí jiǔnineteen; 19
- 重九chóng jiǔthe Double Ninth Festival (9th day of the 9th lunar month)
Example Sentence
我每天晚上九点开始写作业。Wǒ měi tiān wǎn shàng jiǔ diǎn kāi shǐ xiě zuò yè.I start my homework at nine every evening.
我WǒI每天měi tiānevery day晚上wǎn shàngevening九jiǔnine点diǎnto touch briefly开始kāi shǐto begin写作xiě zuòto write业yèline of business。
Go deeper
Where this character comes from
Originally a pictograph of a bent arm reaching and probing. It was borrowed for the sound ‘nine’, the largest single digit.
A way to remember it
A hook reaching as far as it can go — nine, the last single digit.