痴 (chī): imbecile, sentimental, stupid
痴 (chī) is a Chinese character meaning “imbecile.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 疒 (semantic) and 知 (phonetic). It ranks #2173 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 痴 sickness. Its radical form 疒 (illness) appears in many related characters such as 医 (yī, medicine), 病 (bìng, illness), 疼 (téng, ache).
Definitions
- imbecile
- sentimental
- stupid
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 痴 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 白痴noun | bái chī | idiocy |
| 痴迷verb | chī mí | infatuated |
| 痴呆adjective | chī dāi | stupid |
| 老年痴呆症noun | lǎo nián chī dāi zhèng | senile dementia |
| 痴心妄想phrase | chī xīn wàng xiǎng | to be carried away by one's wishful thinking (idiom) |
| 如痴如醉phrase | rú chī rú zuì | (idiom) enthralled |
| 痴心adjective | chī xīn | infatuation |
| 痴情noun | chī qíng | infatuation |
| 痴痴adjective | chī chī | foolish |
| 痴想verb | chī xiǎng | to daydream |
| 痴人说梦phrase | chī rén shuō mèng | lunatic ravings |
| 早老性痴呆 | zǎo lǎo xìng chī dāi | (coll.) Alzheimer's disease |
| 老年性痴呆症 | lǎo nián xìng chī dāi zhèng | senile dementia |
| 老年痴呆noun | lǎo nián chī dāi | senile dementia |
| 如醉如痴phrase | rú zuì rú chī | see 如癡如醉|如痴如醉 |
痴 appears in 28 compound words: 54 as the first character, 25 as the last, and 21 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 痴 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (5)
in ecstasies over; intoxicated by something; enchanted; carried away; spellbound; fascinated
in ecstasies over; intoxicated by something; enchanted; carried away; spellbound; fascinated
Example Sentences
老师教我们痴字的发音和笔顺。
lǎo shī jiào wǒ men chī zì de fā yīn hé bǐ shùn .
The teacher taught us the pronunciation and stroke order of the character "痴."
而痴迷于户外探险的老同学高晟华跑遍贵州后，萌生了在溶洞里开店的想法。
ér chī mí yú hù wài tàn xiǎn de lǎo tóng xué gāo 晟 huá pǎo biàn guì zhōu hòu , méng shēng le zài róng dòng lǐ kāi diàn de xiǎng fǎ .
Gao Shenghua, an old classmate who is passionate about outdoor adventures, traveled all over Guizhou and eventually came up with the idea of opening a shop inside a limestone cave.
他自幼痴迷阅读，同时又深感一张白纸是最可怕、也是最可爱的对象。
tā zì yòu chī mí yuè dòu , tóng shí yòu shēn gǎn yī zhāng bái zhǐ shì zuì kě pà , yě shì zuì kě ài de duì xiàng .
From a young age, he was obsessed with reading, yet he also felt that a blank sheet of paper was both the most terrifying and the most endearing thing.
76人篮板能力弱!“篮板痴汉”卓蒙德成关键 主帅纳斯也盛赞
7 6 rén lán bǎn néng lì ruò ! lán bǎn chī hàn zhuó méng dé chéng guān jiàn zhǔ shuài nà sī yě shèng zàn
The 76ers struggle on the boards! "Rebound machine" Drummond proves crucial; Coach Nurse also heaps praise on him
独家》涉贪又多情!徐汉逃亡全靠“她” 痴情女助惨被押
dú jiā shè tān yòu duō qíng ! xú hàn táo wáng quán kào tā chī qíng nǚ zhù cǎn bèi yā
Exclusive: Accused of Corruption and Romantic Entanglements! Xu Han’s Escape Relyed Entirely on “Her”—His Devoted Female Accomplice Was Tragically Arrested
短裙女搭捷运“大腿被蹭10秒” 低头见痴汉露鸟套弄
duǎn qún nǚ dā jié yùn dà tuǐ bèi cèng 1 0 miǎo dī tóu jiàn chī hàn lù niǎo tào nòng
The woman in a short skirt took the MRT and "her thighs were rubbed for 10 seconds" and looked down to see the fool dew and the bird
白痴，你脑子进水了？
Báichī, nǐ nǎozijìnshuǐ le?
Idiot... You got water in your brain or something?
这是我人生中见过最白痴的事。
Zhè shì wǒrén shēng zhōng jiàn guo zuì bái chī de shì.
This is the stupidest thing I've ever seen in my entire life.
世界上都是白痴。
Shìjiè shàng dōu shì báichī.
The world is full of fools.
做该做的事是智慧，做不该做的事是愚痴。
Zuò gāi zuò de shì shì zhìhuì, zuò bù gāi zuò de shì shì yú chī.
Intelligence is doing what you are supposed to, while stupidity is doing what you are not supposed to.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 疒 (sickness) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 痴 (chī) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 痴 and 蜘?
How many strokes does 痴 have?
What is the radical of 痴?
What are the components of 痴?
What are common words containing 痴?
What characters sound the same as 痴 (chī)?
Is 痴 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 痴 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.