今 (jīn): now, the present time, current
今 (jīn) is a Chinese character meaning “now.” Classified as HSK Level 1 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 人 (structural). It ranks #336 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 今 a mouth 亼 talking about things. Its radical form 亻 (person) appears in many related characters such as 人 (rén, person), 什 (shén, what), 介 (jiè, to introduce).
Definitions
- now
- the present time
- current
Etymology & Origin
ideographicA mouth 亼 talking about things
Stroke Order
Practice writing 今 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 今
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 今天noun | jīn tiān | today | 1 |
| 如今noun | rú jīn | nowadays | 5 |
| 至今adverb | zhì jīn | so far | 5 |
| 今日noun | jīn rì | today | 5 |
| 今后noun | jīn hòu | hereafter | 4 |
| 当今noun | dāng jīn | the present time | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 今晚noun | jīn wǎn | tonight |
| 今年noun | jīn nián | this year |
| 今夜noun | jīn yè | tonight |
| 迄今为止adverb | qì jīn wéi zhǐ | so far |
| 现今adverb | xiàn jīn | now |
| 今生noun | jīn shēng | this lifetime |
| 今晨noun | jīn chén | this morning |
| 而今adverb | ér jīn | now |
| 今儿noun | jīn r | (coll.) today |
| 迄今adverb | qì jīn | so far |
| 时至今日phrase | shí zhì jīn rì | (idiom) up to the present |
| 今非昔比phrase | jīn fēi xī bǐ | (idiom) things are very different now |
| 现如今adverb | xiàn rú jīn | nowadays |
| 今朝noun | jīn zhāo | (dialect) today |
| 古往今来phrase | gǔ wǎng jīn lái | since ancient times |
今 appears in 68 compound words: 46 as the first character, 37 as the last, and 18 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 今 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (22)
to possess a wide knowledge of things ancient and modern; erudite and informed
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 possess a wide knowledge of things ancient and modern; erudite and informed
to satirize the present by discussing and commenting on historical events or figures
Showing 12 of 22 idioms containing 今.
Example Sentences
今天的会议很重要，请大家准时参加。
Jīntiān de huìyì hěn zhòngyào, qǐng dàjiā zhǔnshí cānjiā.
Today's meeting is very important; please attend on time.
今天日出时在法鲁机场登机
jīn tiān rì chū shí zài fǎ lǔ jī chǎng dēng jī
Boarding at Faro Airport at sunrise today
...创科园冀2035前创10万职位 马惟善:今年招商引资 打造湾区桥头堡
. . . chuàng kē yuán 冀 2 0 3 5 qián chuàng 1 0 wàn zhí wèi mǎ 惟 shàn : jīn nián zhāo shāng yǐn zī dǎ zào wān qū qiáo tóu bǎo
... The innovation and technology park hopes to create 100,000 jobs by 2035 Ma Weishan: This year's investment promotion will build a bridgehead in the Bay Area
「春节海采」今年春节怎么过
chūn jié hǎi cǎi jīn nián chūn jié zěn má guò
"How to spend the Spring Festival this year?
请停留3秒 为这5位空军勇士献花!今天是万家团圆的..
qǐng tíng liú miǎo wéi zhè wèi kōng jūn yǒng shì xiàn huā ! jīn tiān shì mò jiā tuán yuán de . .
Please pause for 3 seconds to pay tribute to these five air force heroes! Today is a day when families gather together...
宇树科技王兴兴:今年宇树科技的目标出货量在1-2万..
yǔ shù kē jì wáng xīng xīng jīn nián yǔ shù kē jì de mù biāo chū huò liáng zài mò . .
Wang Xingxing of Yushu Technology: This year, Yushu Technology's target shipment volume is 10,000 to 20,000 units.
你今天早上喂过狗了吗？
Nǐ jīntiān zǎoshang wèi guo gǒu le ma?
Did you feed the dog this morning?
我们今晚出去吃饭，你说怎么样？
Wǒmen jīnwǎn chūqù chīfàn, nǐ shuō zěnmeyàng?
What do you say to dining out tonight?
今天很冷啊，不是吗？
Jīntiān hěn lěng ā, bùshìma?
It's a cold day, isn't it?
你们为什么想今天走？
Nǐmen wèishénme xiǎng jīntiān zǒu?
Why do you want to leave today?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
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Is 今 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 今 with real-time feedback
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