The character 疾 — “illness”: how to write it and what it means

疾
jí

illness; fast

10 strokes · HSK 5

The Chinese character 疾 is read jí and means “illness; fast”. Below: the stroke order step by step, what the character is made of and the words it appears in.

Stroke order: how to write 疾

疾 has 10 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 疾, with strokes to trace and empty squares.

What 疾 is made of

On top, 疒 “illness”; inside, 矢 “arrow”. Hence the second meaning — “fast”.

The parts of a character hint at its meaning or its reading — more in the article “Chinese character radicals”.

Words with 疾

Frequently asked questions

How do you write the character 疾?

疾 has 10 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 疾 mean?

疾 means “illness; fast”. It appears in 疾病 (“disease”), 残疾 (“disability”).

How do you pronounce 疾?

疾 is read jí. The tone is part of the reading: with another melody it becomes another syllable.

How many strokes does 疾 have?

10 strokes.

← 防 defend避 avoid →

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 疾 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.

Start for free