(jiù) - old, used, second-hand; former in Mandarin
jiùTraditional: 舊
Translation
old, used, second-hand; former
Word origin
The simplified form writes 丨 beside 日 (rì, sun); the traditional 舊 is a phono-semantic character with 萑 above 臼 (jiù) as the sound element.
- Origin
- phonetic
- Root
- 舊: 臼 (jiù, phonetic) + 萑 (bird radical)
Stroke order
旧
Examples
。
This coat is far too old.
辆。
I bought a second-hand car.
，。
The house is old, but it's comfortable to live in.
。
He still keeps those old photographs.
。
The old phone can be sold off.
旧 (jiù) means old in the sense of worn, used or no longer new. It applies to objects: clothes, cars, houses, phones. Its opposite is 新 (xīn, new).
The trap is the other "old". For people you want 老 (lǎo), never 旧. Saying 我的老师很旧 does not mean your teacher is elderly, it means she is second-hand. 老 also covers long-standing relationships (老朋友, an old friend), where 旧 would suggest the friendship is worn out.
旧 also carries a "former" sense in set phrases: 旧社会 (the old society, pre-1949 China), 旧地址 (previous address). In those it is about the earlier version of something, not its physical condition.
Where this fits
Used in
Add to review queue
Track this word in your spaced-repetition queue and be tested on it at the right interval.
Go to my review queueMandarin · Free printables
旧: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "旧" (old, used, second-hand; former): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
Free for members
The printable worksheets, infographics and PDFs are free with an account. Start a free week and download as many as you like.
Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 41.