How to say “borrow” in Chinese
borrow, lend
“Borrow” in Chinese is 借, jiè: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
借 is read jiè. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
On the left, 亻 “person”.
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “借”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 借. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 我可以借你的伞吗？wǒkěyǐjiènǐdesǎnmaCan I borrow your umbrella?
- 外面下雨了，我借给你一把伞吧。wàimiànxiàyǔle,wǒjiègěinǐyìbǎsǎnbaIt’s raining out, let me lend you an umbrella.
- 我忘带橡皮了，能借我用一下吗？wǒwàngdàixiàngpíle,néngjièwǒyòngyíxiàmaI forgot my eraser — can I borrow yours for a minute?
- 借的书要按时归还jièdeshūyàoànshíguīhuánBorrowed books must be returned on time.
- 他们的做法值得我们借鉴tāmendezuòfǎzhídéwǒmenjièjiànTheir approach is worth adopting.
- 借助词典他读懂了这篇文章jièzhùcídiǎn,tādúdǒnglezhèpiānwénzhāngWith the help of a dictionary, he figured out this article.
More characters by topic — happiness, luck, strength, nature — on the page “Chinese characters with meanings”.
More words from the lesson “Borrow and return”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “borrow” in Chinese?
“Borrow” in Chinese is 借, pinyin jiè.
What does 借 mean?
借 (jiè) means “borrow, lend”.
How do you write 借?
借 is 1 character. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 借?
借 is read jiè. Tones: jiè — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“borrow” in the lesson “Borrow and return”
This word is from the topic “Shopping and things” of HSK 3. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
Start for free