(yí kè) - a quarter of an hour; a moment, an instant in Mandarin
yíkèTraditional: 一刻
Translation
a quarter of an hour; a moment, an instant
Word origin
刻 (kè) means to carve, and it named the notches cut down the shaft of a water clock. One 刻 was a division of the day, later fixed at fifteen minutes.
- Origin
- compound
- Root
- 一 (yī, one) + 刻 (kè, a notch on a water clock)
Stroke order
一
刻
Examples
。
It is a quarter past three.
。
I have not forgotten him for a single moment.
。
At that moment I could not say a word.
。
Just wait another quarter of an hour.
。
This is the most important moment of my life.
一刻 (yí kè) does two jobs. On a clock it is a quarter of an hour, so 三点一刻 is a quarter past three and 差一刻五点 is a quarter to five. In feeling it is a moment, the single instant when something happened.
The two senses split apart when the phrase stands alone as a length of time. For a duration you normally say 一刻钟: 等一刻钟, 走了一刻钟. Bare 一刻 as a duration only really survives in the emphatic negative, 一刻也不, meaning not for one second.
The trap for English speakers is register. 那一刻 is weighty and slightly literary, the stuff of memoirs and love songs. For an ordinary short wait in speech, use 一会儿: 等一会儿, not 等一刻.
Where this fits
Used in
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一刻: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "一刻" (a quarter of an hour; a moment, an instant): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 53.