借 (jiè): to borrow
借 (jiè) is a Chinese character meaning “to borrow.” Classified as HSK Level 3 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 亻 (semantic) and 昔 (phonetic). It ranks #983 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 借 person. Its radical form 亻 (person) appears in many related characters such as 人 (rén, person), 什 (shén, what), 今 (jīn, now).
Definitions
- to borrow
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 借 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 借
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 借助verb | jiè zhù | to draw support from | 6 |
| 凭借verb | píng jiè | to rely on | 5 |
| 借鉴verb | jiè jiàn | to draw on (others' experience) | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 借口 | jiè kǒu | to use as an excuse |
| 借用verb | jiè yòng | to borrow sth for another use |
| 借光verb | jiè guāng | excuse me (i.e. let me through, please) |
| 借机 | jiè jī | to seize the opportunity |
| 租借verb | zū jiè | to rent |
| 借宿verb | jiè sù | to stay with sb |
| 借出verb | jiè chū | to lend |
| 借贷noun | jiè dài | to borrow or lend money |
| 借款noun | jiè kuǎn | to lend money |
| 借条noun | jiè tiáo | receipt for a loan |
| 借书证 | jiè shū zhèng | library card |
| 借调verb | jiè diào | to temporarily transfer (personnel) |
| 借问verb | jiè wèn | (honorific) May I ask? |
| 借债verb | jiè zhài | to borrow money |
| 借阅verb | jiè yuè | to borrow books to read |
借 appears in 89 compound words: 78 as the first character, 12 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 借 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (9)
to get someone else to do one's dirty work; to attack someone using the strength of another
to satirize the present by discussing and commenting on historical events or figures
to allude to present events or figures by referencing historical events or figures
to offer something that one has received (as a gift, favour, etc.) to someone else
Example Sentences
我可以借给你这本书，但下周要还给我。
Wǒ kěyǐ jiè gěi nǐ zhè běn shū, dàn xià zhōu yào huán gěi wǒ.
I can lend you this book, but you need to return it to me next week.
沃特世推出新一代微流液相色谱柱,凭借 MaxPeak Premier 技术实...
wò tè shì tuī chū xīn yī dài wēi liú yè xiāng sè pǔ zhù , píng jiè M a x P e a k P r e m i e r jì shù shí . . .
Waters has launched a new generation of microflow LC columns with MaxPeak Premier technology...
国战会论坛》贾永婕借历史表态 不会获得正义(王昆义)
guó zhàn huì lùn tán gǔ yǒng 婕 jiè lì shǐ biǎo tài bù huì huò dé zhèng yì ( wáng kūn yì )
National War Conference Forum" Jia Yongjie used history to express that she would not get justice (Wang Kunyi)
...军国主义的历史源流与现实危害:蠢蠢欲动 借机复燃
. . . jūn guó zhǔ yì de lì shǐ yuán liú yǔ xiàn shí wēi hài : chǔn chǔn yù dòng jiè jī fù rán
... The historical origin and practical harm of militarism: ready to take the opportunity to rekindle
2月24日上海銀行間同業拆借利率
yuè rì shàng hǎi 銀 háng 間 tóng 業 chāi jiè lì lǜ
February 24 Shanghai Interbank Offered Rate
米蘭大教堂雕像 贊助修復便可有條件借展
mǐ 蘭 dà jiào táng diāo xiàng 贊 zhù xiū 復 biàn kě yǒu 條 jiàn jiè zhǎn
Milan Cathedral Statue: Conditional Loan for Restoration Sponsorship
这本书我能借多久？
Zhè běn shū wǒ néng jiè duōjiǔ?
How long can I borrow this book?
你能把你的自行车借给我吗？
Nǐ néng bǎ nǐ de zìxíngchē jiè gěi wǒ ma?
Can you lend me your bicycle?
可以借点钱给我吗？我现在有点缺钱。
Kěyǐ jiè diǎn qián gěi wǒ ma? wǒ xiànzài yǒudiǎn quēqián.
Could you lend me some money? I'm short of cash at the moment.
可以借你的电话用用吗？
Kěyǐ jiè nǐ de diànhuà yòng yòng ma?
May I use your phone?
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 亻 (person) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 借 (jiè) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 借 and 措?
How many strokes does 借 have?
What is the radical of 借?
What are the components of 借?
What are common words containing 借?
What characters sound the same as 借 (jiè)?
Is 借 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 借 with real-time feedback
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