The character 期 — “period”: how to write it and what it means
period, term
The Chinese character 期 is read qī and means “period, term”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.
Stroke order: how to write 期
期 has 12 strokes. At each step the new stroke is highlighted — write them in the same order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical, a frame before what is inside it, and the bottom stroke of the frame last.
To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for 期, with strokes to trace and empty squares.
What 期 is made of
On the right, 月 “moon”.
The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.
Words with 期
- 星期weekHSK 1
- 星期天SundayHSK 1
- 星期日Sunday (written)HSK 1
- 假期vacation, holidaysHSK 3
- 学期semesterHSK 3
- 期中mid-semesterHSK 4
- 期末end of semesterHSK 4
- 日期dateHSK 4
- 过期expiredHSK 5
- 到期expire (of a term)HSK 5
- 近期near future / recentlyHSK 5
- 长期long term; long-termHSK 5
- 短期short-termHSK 5
- 期间period, duringHSK 5
- 初期initial periodHSK 5
- 中期middle periodHSK 5
Frequently asked questions
How do you write the character 期?
期 has 12 strokes. They follow the usual rules: top to bottom, left to right, horizontal before vertical, outside before inside. The order of each stroke is shown on this page.
What does 期 mean?
期 means “period, term”. It appears in 星期 (“week”), 星期天 (“Sunday”), 星期日 (“Sunday”), 假期 (“vacation”).
How do you pronounce 期?
期 is read qī. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.
How many strokes does 期 have?
12 strokes.
More characters on the page “Chinese characters with meanings” and in the list of HSK characters by level; whole words are in the dictionary.
Write 期 yourself
In the lessons you write characters stroke by stroke with a finger or a mouse, and the course checks the order. You can start for free, no sign-up needed.
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