膝 (xī): knee
膝 (xī) is a Chinese character meaning “knee.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of ⺼ (semantic) and 桼 (phonetic). It ranks #2244 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 膝 flesh. Its radical form 肉 (meat) appears in many related characters such as 肉 (ròu, meat), 能 (néng, can), 背 (bèi, the back of a body or object).
Definitions
- knee
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 膝 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 膝盖noun | xī gài | knee |
| 膝盖骨noun | xī gài gǔ | kneecap |
| 膝下noun | xī xià | at the knee (in reference to children) |
| 护膝noun | hù xī | kneepad |
| 促膝谈心 | cù xī tán xīn | (idiom) to sit side-by-side and have a heart-to-heart talk |
| 促膝 | cù xī | to sit knee to knee |
| 男人膝下有黄金 | nán rén xī xià yǒu huáng jīn | lit. the man has gold under his knees |
| 膝上型电脑noun | xī shàng xíng diàn nǎo | laptop (computer) |
| 膝上型 | xī shàng xíng | laptop (computer) |
| 膝上舞 | xī shàng wǔ | lap dance |
| 绕膝承欢 | rào xī chéng huān | to live with one's parents, thus bringing them happiness (idiom) |
| 牛膝草noun | niú xī cǎo | hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis) |
| 双膝 | shuāng xī | both knees |
| 牛膝noun | niú xī | Achyranthes bidentata (root used in Chinese medicine) |
| 屈膝礼 | qū xī lǐ | curtsy |
膝 appears in 22 compound words: 32 as the first character, 41 as the last, and 27 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 膝 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (3)
Example Sentences
膝字在日常生活中使用频率较低。
xī zì zài rì cháng shēng huó zhōng shǐ yòng pín lǜ jiào dī .
The character "膝" is not frequently used in everyday life.
...特朗普夸张表现褒贬不一 网民:为何卑躬屈膝地向对方低头
. . . tè lǎng pǔ kuā zhāng biǎo xiàn bāo biǎn bù yī wǎng mín : wéi hé bēi gōng qū xī dì xiàng duì fāng dī tóu
...Trump's flamboyant behavior has drawn mixed reactions; netizens ask: Why is he kowtowing to the other side?
高市早苗白宫会特朗普卑躬屈膝态度遭狠批 日网民斥:夸张表情让我感羞愧
gāo shì zǎo miáo bái gōng huì tè lǎng pǔ bēi gōng qū xī tài dù zāo hěn pī rì wǎng mín chì : kuā zhāng biǎo qíng ràng wǒ gǎn xiū kuì
Sanae Takaichi Faces Harsh Criticism for Her Obsequious Attitude During Meeting with Trump at the White House; Japanese Netizens Decry: "Her Exaggerated Expressions Make Me Feel Embarrassed"
深蹲会对膝盖造成损伤吗?
shēn cún huì duì xī gài zào chéng sǔn shāng ma ?
Can squats cause knee injuries?
名家论坛》膝关节/当星际效应遇上异星入境与怪兽电力公...
míng jiā lùn tán xī guān jié dāng xīng jì xiào yīng yù shàng yì xīng rù jìng yǔ guài shòu diàn lì gōng . . .
"Master Forum" > Knee Joint / When "Interstellar" Meets "Arrival" and "Monsters, Inc."...
年轻人膝盖痛就医 竟是过度运动造成“皱襞症候群”
nián qīng rén xī gài tòng jiù yī jìng shì guò dù yùn dòng zào chéng zhòu 襞 zhèng hòu qún
Young people seek medical attention for knee pain and are actually caused by excessive exercise
我不弯膝也能把手掌平放在地上。
Wǒ bù wān xī yě néng bǎshǒu zhǎng píng fàng zài dìshàng.
I can place the palms of my hands on the floor without bending my knees.
母亲把药膏涂在了我膝盖的伤口上。
Mǔqīn bǎ yàogāo tú zài le wǒ xīgài de shāngkǒu shàng.
Mother applied the medicine to the sore on my knee.
我在膝盖上跟婴儿玩。
Wǒ zài xīgài shàng gēn yīng'ér wán.
I played with the baby on my knee.
他从腰部到膝盖都湿了。
Tā cóng yāobù dào xīgài dōu shī le.
He got wet from the waist to the knees.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the ⺼ (flesh) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 膝 (xī) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 膝 have?
What is the radical of 膝?
What are the components of 膝?
What are common words containing 膝?
What characters sound the same as 膝 (xī)?
Is 膝 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 膝 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.