驾 (jià): to drive
驾 (jià) is a Chinese character meaning “to drive.” Classified as HSK Level 5 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 加 (phonetic) and 马 (semantic). It ranks #1557 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 驾 horse. Its radical form 马 (horse) appears in many related characters such as 马 (mǎ, horse), 骑 (qí, to ride), 验 (yàn, to test, to verify).
Definitions
- to drive
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 驾 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 驾
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 驾驶verb | jià shǐ | to drive (vehicle) | 5 |
| 驾照noun | jià zhào | driver's license (abbr. for 駕駛執照|驾驶执照[jia4 shi3 zhi2 zhao4]) | 5 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 驾车 | jià chē | to drive a vehicle |
| 劳驾 | láo jià | excuse me |
| 驾驶员 | jià shǐ yuán | pilot |
| 驾驭 | jià yù | to urge on (of horse) |
| 驾驶舱 | jià shǐ cāng | cockpit |
| 凌驾 | líng jià | to be above |
| 驾驶证 | jià shǐ zhèng | driver's license |
| 驾驶室 | jià shǐ shì | cab (of a locomotive, truck etc) |
| 驾轻就熟 | jià qīng jiù shú | lit. an easy drive on a familiar path (idiom) |
| 驾临 | jià lín | to grace sb with one's presence |
| 并驾齐驱 | bìng jià qí qū | (idiom) to run neck and neck |
| 驾校 | jià xiào | driving school |
| 驾御 | jià yù | variant of 駕馭|驾驭[jia4 yu4] |
| 驾机 | jià jī | to fly an airplane |
| 保驾 | bǎo jià | (in former times) to escort the emperor (or other important personage) |
驾 appears in 69 compound words: 41 as the first character, 33 as the last, and 26 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 驾 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (9)
to keep pace with; to keep abreast of; to advance at an equal pace with; to run neck and neck; to be on a par with
to keep pace with; to keep abreast of; to advance at an equal pace with; to run neck and neck; to be on a par with
Showing 8 of 9 idioms containing 驾.
Example Sentences
请系好安全带，我要开始驾驶了。
Qǐng jì hǎo ānquándài, wǒ yào kāishǐ jiàshǐ le.
Please fasten your seatbelt; I'm about to start driving.
昨晚喝了酒,今天开车算酒驾吗?答案来了
zuó wǎn hē le jiǔ , jīn tiān kāi chē suàn jiǔ jià ma ? dā àn lái le
I drank last night, is driving drunk today? Here comes the answer
昨晚喝了酒,今天开车算酒驾吗?别被“隔夜酒”坑了
zuó wǎn hē le jiǔ , jīn tiān kāi chē suàn jiǔ jià ma ? bié bèi gé yè jiǔ kēng le
I drank last night, is driving drunk today? Don't be fooled by "overnight wine"
国3龙井段惊魂!驾驶分心追撞缓撞车 车流回堵2公里
guó 3 lóng jǐng duàn jīng hún ! jià shǐ fēn xīn zhuī zhuàng huǎn zhuàng chē chē liú huí dǔ 2 gōng lǐ
National 3 Longjing section is horror! The driver was distracted and slowed down the collision, and the traffic flow was blocked for 2 kilometers
黄侦琳酒驾不退选?Cheap掀她底狠酸:这女士还挺...
huáng zhēn 琳 jiǔ jià bù tuì xuǎn ? C h e a p xiān tā de hěn suān : zhè nǚ shì hái tǐng . . .
Huang Jianlin drunk driving does not withdraw from the election? Cheap lifted her bottom and soured: This lady is quite sour...
男子驾车返乡途中,在服务区内临时下车,结果被猫...
nán zǐ jià chē fǎn xiāng tú zhōng , zài fú wù ōu nèi lín shí xià chē , jié guǒ bèi māo . . .
Man driving back to his hometown on the way, in the service area temporarily get off, the results were cat...
汤姆因无证驾驶而被逮捕。
Tāngmǔ yīn wú zhèng jiàshǐ ér bèi dàibǔ.
Tom was arrested for driving without a licence.
司机被控超速驾驶。
Sījī bèikòng chāosù jiàshǐ.
The driver was charged with speeding.
喝醉的驾驶员对车祸有责任。
Hēzuì de jiàshǐyuán duì chēhuò yǒuzérèn.
A drunk driver was responsible for the car accident.
警察因酒后驾驶逮捕了他。
Jǐngchá yīn jiǔhòujiàshǐ dàibǔ le tā.
The policeman arrested him for drunken driving.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 驾 (jià) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 驾 and 咖?
How many strokes does 驾 have?
What is the radical of 驾?
What are the components of 驾?
What are common words containing 驾?
What characters sound the same as 驾 (jià)?
Is 驾 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 驾 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear native pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.