(zì jǐ) - oneself, self in Mandarin

zìjǐ

Traditional: 自己

Line drawing of 自己
Coloured illustration of 自己
HSK 3
#65 of 2,700Core 1000

Translation

oneself, self

Test yourself on 自己

Three quick questions. No account needed.

Know this word? Create a free account to track it.

Word origin

自己 (zìjǐ) 'oneself' joins 自 (zì, 'self') and 己 (jǐ, 'self, oneself'). 自 is a pictograph of a nose (Chinese speakers point to their own nose for 'me'), hence 'self'; 己 is a pictograph traditionally read as a coiled cord used for the reflexive 'self'.

Origin
compound
Root
自 (zì, pictograph of a nose, 'self') + 己 (jǐ, 'self')

Stroke order

Stroke order for 自

自

Stroke order for 己

己

Examples

,。

Go by yourself, I have something to do.

。

She does everything herself.

。

You need to have confidence in yourself.

。

I will cook for myself.

。

He only cares about himself.

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.

Chapters 1 and 2 free

Meet this word in a story

Every course has graded stories written only with words you have been taught, plus grammar drills, a games arcade and printable worksheets. Chapters 1 and 2 are free.

Chapters 1 and 2 free, forever. Plus: 7 days free, then $5 a month for all eleven languages.

Start learning free

Mandarin · Free printables

自己: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "自己" (oneself, self): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

This word is taught in chapter 2, lesson 8: 自己, 个, 看 and 7 more words.