阶 (jiē): rank or step, stairs
阶 (jiē) is a Chinese character meaning “rank or step.” Classified as HSK Level 5 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 阝 (semantic) and 介 (phonetic). It ranks #745 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 阶 hill. Its radical form 阝 (mound) appears in many related characters such as 那 (nà, (specifier) that), 都 (dōu, all), 院 (yuàn, courtyard).
Definitions
- rank or step
- stairs
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 阶 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 阶
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 阶级noun | jiē jí | (social) class |
| 中产阶级noun | zhōng chǎn jiē jí | middle class |
| 阶层noun | jiē céng | social class |
| 阶梯noun | jiē tī | flight of steps |
| 工人阶级noun | gōng rén jiē jí | working class |
| 现阶段 | xiàn jiē duàn | at the present stage |
| 音阶noun | yīn jiē | musical scale |
| 官阶noun | guān jiē | official rank |
| 工薪阶层noun | gōng xīn jiē céng | salaried class |
| 无产阶级noun | wú chǎn jiē jí | proletariat |
| 资产阶级noun | zī chǎn jiē jí | the capitalist class |
| 阶段性noun | jiē duàn xìng | specific to a particular stage (of a project etc) |
| 石阶noun | shí jiē | stone step |
| 阶级斗争noun | jiē jí dòu zhēng | class struggle |
| 进身之阶 | jìn shēn zhī jiē | stepping-stone to greater power or higher rank |
阶 appears in 47 compound words: 26 as the first character, 32 as the last, and 43 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 阶 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (8)
lit. earthen steps and a small cottage; frugal living conditions (idiom)
Example Sentences
阶字在日常生活中使用频率中等。
jiē zì zài rì cháng shēng huó zhōng shǐ yòng pín lǜ zhōng děng .
The character "阶" is used moderately frequently in daily life.
苏林总书记:在新的发展阶段增强“物质内力”与巩固“精神内力”
sū lín zǒng shū jì : zài xīn de fā zhǎn jiē duàn zēng qiáng wù zhì nèi lì yǔ gǒng gù jīng shén nèi lì
General Secretary Su Lin: Enhance "material internal force" and consolidate "spiritual internal force" in the new development stage
...0476.SZ)二次递表港交所 专注于高阶HDI、高多层PCB的研发、生产和销售
. . . 0 4 7 6 . S Z ) èr cì dì biǎo gǎng jiāo suǒ zhuān zhù yú gāo jiē H D I , gāo duō céng P C B de yán fā , shēng chǎn hé xiāo shòu
... 0476.SZ) Secondary submission of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange focuses on the research and development, production and sales of high-end HDI and high-multilayer PCBs
...火出圈!机构预计今年年产业链迎来规模放量阶段(附概念股)
. . . huǒ chū juān ! jī gòu yù jì jīn nián nián chǎn yè liàn yíng lái guī mó fàng liàng jiē duàn ( fù gài niàn gǔ )
... Fire out of the circle! Institutions expect that this year's industrial chain will usher in a stage of large-scale volume (with concept stocks)
文攻武吓 纽时:川普拟分2阶段攻伊朗
wén gōng wǔ hè niǔ shí : chuān pǔ nǐ fēn 2 jiē duàn gōng yī lǎng
Cultural attack and military intimidation New York Times: Trump plans to attack Iran in two stages
中国有日益壮大的中产阶层。
Zhōngguó yǒu rìyì zhuàngdà de zhōngchǎn jiēcéng.
China has a growing middle class.
他俩的爱情，已经上升了一个台阶。
Tā liǎ de àiqíng, yǐjīng shàngshēng le yī gè táijiē.
Their love has gone to the next level.
他的军阶比我高一级。
Tā de jūn jiē bǐ wǒ gāo yījí.
He is immediately above me in rank.
工程的第一阶段已经完成了。
Gōngchéng de dìyī jiēduàn yǐjīng wánchéng le.
The first phase of construction has been completed.
美国是一个自称没有社会阶层的国家。
Měiguó shì yī gè zìchēng méiyǒu shèhuìjiēcéng de guójiā.
America likes to claim that it is a "classless" society.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 阝 (hill) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 阶 (jiē) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 阶 and 价?
How many strokes does 阶 have?
What is the radical of 阶?
What are the components of 阶?
What are common words containing 阶?
What characters sound the same as 阶 (jiē)?
Is 阶 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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