Learn Chinese Characters

Meaning

life; age; generation; era; world; lifetime

Chinese: 世界、世代。

Hear the Four Tones

The same syllable “shi” becomes a different word in each tone. 世 is the 4th 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

  • 世界shì jièworld
  • 世纪shì jìcentury
  • 去世qù shìto pass away; to die
  • 全世界quán shì jièworldwide; entire world
  • 逝世shì shìto pass away; to die

Example Sentence

这是世界上最高的山。Zhè shì shì jiè shàng zuì gāo de shān.This is the tallest mountain in the world.

Zhèthisshìis世界shì jièworldshàngon最高zuì gāotallestdeofshānmountain

Go deeper

Where this character comes from

A pictograph based on three tens (卅, about thirty years = one human generation). It means ‘a generation, lifetime; an age, era; the world’ (世界, 世纪, 一辈子).

A way to remember it

Three tens of years — a generation; the world.