气 qì — air; anger; gas; gas; air; smell
他生气地走开了。Tā shēng qì de zǒu kāi le.He walked away angrily.
Common words: 天气 (tiān qì)、生气 (shēng qì)、不客气 (bù kè qi)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "air"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "air", including 气 (qì), 气 (qì), 空 (kōng), 严 (yán). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "air" covers 4 different Chinese characters — 气 (qì), 气 (qì), 空 (kōng), 严 (yán) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 4 characters do not share a sound — their readings span qì, kōng, yán — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 气 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 气 qìair; anger; gas; gas; air; smellUseful words: 天气, 生气
- 气 qìair; anger; gas; gas; air; smellUseful words: 天气, 生气
- 空 kōngair; sky; empty; in vain; emptied; leisureUseful words: 空气, 有空儿
- 严 yán(air or water) tight; stern; serious; strict; severeUseful words: 严重, 严格
Common words for these 4 "air" characters
Anchor each of these 4 characters in a word you can picture — start with 气 (qì) — so "air" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
天气tiān qìweather生气shēng qìto get angry; to be furious; vitality; liveliness不客气bù kè qiyou're welcome; don't mention it; impolite; rude天气tiān qìweather生气shēng qìto get angry; to be furious; vitality; liveliness不客气bù kè qiyou're welcome; don't mention it; impolite; rude空气kōng qìair; atmosphere有空儿yǒu kòng rerhua form of 有空天空tiān kōngsky严重yán zhònggrave; serious; severe; critical
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 4 ways to say "air".
气 qì — air; anger; gas; gas; air; smell
他生气地走开了。Tā shēng qì de zǒu kāi le.He walked away angrily.
Common words: 天气 (tiān qì)、生气 (shēng qì)、不客气 (bù kè qi)
空 kōng — air; sky; empty; in vain; emptied; leisure
今天的天空特别蓝。Jīn tiān de tiān kōng tè bié lán.The sky is especially blue today.
Common words: 空气 (kōng qì)、有空儿 (yǒu kòng r)、天空 (tiān kōng)
严 yán — (air or water) tight; stern; serious; strict; severe
我们的老师很严格。Wǒ men de lǎo shī hěn yán gé.Our teacher is very strict.
Common words: 严重 (yán zhòng)、严格 (yán gé)、严肃 (yán sù)
All 4 characters
Open 气、气、空 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.