急 (jí): urgent, pressing, rapid
急 (jí) is a Chinese character meaning “urgent.” Classified as HSK Level 3 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 刍 (phonetic) and 心 (semantic). It ranks #657 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 急 heart. Its radical form 忄 (heart) appears in many related characters such as 忙 (máng, busy), 快 (kuài, fast, happy), 怎 (zěn, how).
Definitions
- urgent
- pressing
- rapid
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 急 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 急
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 紧急adjective | jǐn jí | urgent | 5 |
| 着急adjective | zháo jí | to worry | 3 |
| 急救verb | jí jiù | to give emergency treatment | 6 |
| 急需verb | jí xū | to urgently need | 5 |
| 急诊verb/noun | jí zhěn | to give or receive urgent medical treatment | 5 |
| 急切adjective | jí qiè | eager | 6 |
| 急忙adverb | jí máng | hastily | 5 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 急诊室noun | jí zhěn shì | emergency room |
| 急事noun | jí shì | urgent matter |
| 应急verb | yìng jí | to respond to an emergency |
| 危急adjective | wēi jí | critical |
| 急速adverb | jí sù | hurried |
| 急于verb | jí yú | eager to |
| 急性adjective | jí xìng | acute |
| 心急adjective | xīn jí | anxious |
| 急躁adjective | jí zào | irritable |
| 焦急adjective | jiāo jí | anxiety |
| 当务之急phrase | dāng wù zhī jí | (idiom) top priority job |
| 急剧adjective | jí jù | rapid |
| 急转弯verb | jí zhuǎn wān | to make a sudden turn |
| 操之过急phrase | cāo zhī guò jí | to act with undue haste (idiom) |
| 急救箱noun | jí jiù xiāng | first-aid kit |
急 appears in 100 compound words: 53 as the first character, 37 as the last, and 10 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 急 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (25)
pressing matter of the moment; task of top priority; matter of great urgency
lit. the crisis of being hanged upside down (idiom); fig. extremely critical situation; dire straits
one will take bold risks and desperate actions when forced into desperation
pressing matter of the moment; task of top priority; matter of great urgency
one will take bold risks and desperate actions when forced into desperation
Showing 12 of 25 idioms containing 急.
Example Sentences
这件事让我急烦意乱，整夜都没有睡好。
zhè jiàn shì ràng wǒ jí fán yì luàn , zhěng yè dū méi yǒu shuì hǎo .
This matter has left me in a state of agitation and restlessness, unable to sleep well all night.
紧急储蓄帐户可与401(k)计画结合 但很少...
jǐn jí chǔ xù zhàng hù kě yǔ 4 0 1 ( k ) jì huà jié gě dàn hěn shǎo . . .
Emergency savings accounts can be combined with 401(k) plans But rarely...
东京晴空塔爆电梯急坠事故 约20人受困5.5小时 1200...
dōng jīng qíng kōng tǎ bào diàn tī jí zhuì shì gù yuē 2 0 rén shòu kùn 5 . 5 xiǎo shí 1 2 0 0 . . .
Tokyo Skytree explosion elevator crash about 20 people trapped for 5.5 hours 1200...
挺不住了?印度急切“从中国进口”
tǐng bù zhù le ? yìn dù jí qiē cóng zhōng guó jìn kǒu
Can't hold on? India is eager to "import from China"
你告诉汤姆那是紧急情况了吗？
Nǐ gàosu Tāngmǔ nàshi jǐnjí qíngkuàng le ma?
Did Tom tell you it was an emergency?
你知道海姆利克急救法吗？
Nǐ zhīdào Hǎimǔlìkè jíjiùfǎ ma?
Do you know the Heimlich maneuver?
医生，请给这孩子急救。
Yīshēng, qǐng gěi zhè háizi jíjiù.
Doctor, please give this child first aid.
耐心地坚持下去，这些事急不来。
Nàixīn de jiānchí xiàqù, zhè xiē shì jí bù lái.
Be patient and persistent. These things take time.
万一有紧急情况，联系我的代理人。
Wànyī yǒu jǐnjí qíngkuàng, liánxì wǒ de dàilǐrén.
In case of an emergency, get in touch with my agent.
那个市场一直在急速扩展。
Nàge shìchǎng yīzhí zài jísù kuòzhǎn.
That market has been rapidly expanding.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 心 (heart) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 急 (jí) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 急 and 趋?
How many strokes does 急 have?
What is the radical of 急?
What are the components of 急?
What are common words containing 急?
What characters sound the same as 急 (jí)?
Is 急 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 急 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.