知 (zhī): to know
知 (zhī) is a Chinese character meaning “to know.” Classified as HSK Level 1 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 矢 (phonetic) and 口 (semantic). It ranks #123 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 知 mouth. Its radical form 口 (mouth) appears in many related characters such as 口 (kǒu, mouth), 叫 (jiào, to call, to be called), 右 (yòu, (bound form) right).
Definitions
- to know
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 知 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 知
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 知道verb | zhī dào | to know | 1 |
| 通知verb/noun | tōng zhī | to notify | 4 |
| 得知verb | dé zhī | to find out | 6 |
| 知识noun | zhī shi | knowledge | 4 |
| 知名adjective | zhī míng | well-known | 5 |
| 认知verb | rèn zhī | cognition | 6 |
| 众所周知phrase | zhòng suǒ zhōu zhī | (idiom) as everyone knows | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 不知verb | bù zhī | not to know |
| 一无所知 | yī wú suǒ zhī | (idiom) not knowing anything at all |
| 告知verb | gào zhī | to inform |
| 先知verb | xiān zhī | a person of foresight |
| 无知verb | wú zhī | ignorant |
| 未知adjective | wèi zhī | unknown |
| 知觉noun | zhī jué | perception |
| 知情verb | zhī qíng | to know the facts |
| 知晓verb | zhī xiǎo | to know |
| 不知所措phrase | bù zhī suǒ cuò | not knowing what to do (idiom) |
| 感知verb | gǎn zhī | perception (the process of perceiving sth with the senses) |
| 明知verb | míng zhī | to be fully aware of |
| 不为人知phrase | bù wéi rén zhī | not known to anyone |
| 良知noun | liáng zhī | innate sense of right and wrong |
| 不知不觉phrase | bù zhī bù jué | (idiom) unconsciously |
知 appears in 103 compound words: 33 as the first character, 50 as the last, and 17 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 知 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (57)
to be unable to know or find out; to remain unknown; to be unable to ascertain
forgetting the fate of Ding and Dong (idiom); unheeding the lessons of the past
cannot tell good from bad; to mistake good for bad; to be unable to see others' good intentions
to not know the inside story; to be unfamiliar with the details of the situation
lit. not knowing what's important (idiom); no appreciation of the gravity of things; naive; doesn't know who's who
to be unable to know or find out; to remain unknown; to be unable to ascertain
lit. not knowing what's important (idiom); no appreciation of the gravity of things; naive; doesn't know who's who
Showing 12 of 57 idioms containing 知.
Example Sentences
知道这个消息后，大家都很兴奋，开始讨论庆祝方案。
Zhīdào zhè gè xiāoxi hòu, dàjiā dōu hěn xīngfèn, kāishǐ tǎolùn qìngzhù fāng'àn.
After learning this news, everyone was very excited and began discussing celebration plans.
青菜煮熟能过夜吗能吃吗?这些隔夜菜知识要牢记
qīng cài zhǔ shú néng guò yè ma néng chī ma ? zhè xiē gé yè cài zhī shí yāo láo jì
Can you eat greens overnight when cooked? This overnight dish knowledge should be kept in mind
...蜜桃满十八岁可以用的吗?使用前这些要点需知晓
. . . mì táo mǎn shí bā suì kě yǐ yòng de ma ? shǐ yòng qián zhè xiē yāo diǎn xū zhī xiǎo
... Can peaches be used at 18 years old? These points need to be known before use
鹿儿岛补助外国游客乘搭新干线引争议 知事:可创17亿日圆效益
lù ér dǎo bǔ zhù wài guó yóu kè chéng dā xīn gān xiàn yǐn zhēng yì zhī shì : kě chuàng 1 7 yì rì yuán xiào yì
Kagoshima subsidizes foreign tourists to take the Shinkansen and causes controversy Governor: It can create a benefit of 1.7 billion yen
国补2026年最新政策通知消息:手机家电汽车国补详..
guó bǔ nián zuì xīn zhèng cè tōng zhī xiāo xī shǒu jī jiā diàn qì chē guó bǔ xiáng . .
State subsidy 2026 latest policy notification news: cell phone home appliances car state subsidy detailed ...
2026年世界知识产权报告:创新传播速度达历史新高
nián shì jiè zhī shí chǎn quán bào gào chuàng xīn chuán bō sù dù dá lì shǐ xīn gāo
World Intellectual Property Report 2026: Diffusion of Innovation at Record Pace
您知道这个词的意思吗？
Nín zhīdào zhège cí de yìsi ma?
Do you know the meaning of this word?
不知道是谁发明的呢？
Bù zhīdào shì shéi fāmíng de ne?
I wonder who invented it.
过了这么多年，不知道她还认得我吗？
Guo le zhème duō nián, bù zhīdào tā hái rènde wǒ ma?
I wonder if she'll recognize me after all these years.
你知道这家旅馆吗？
Nǐ zhīdào zhè jiā lǚguǎn ma?
Do you know that hotel?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 知 (zhī) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 知 and 疾?
How many strokes does 知 have?
What is the radical of 知?
What are the components of 知?
What are common words containing 知?
What characters sound the same as 知 (zhī)?
Is 知 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 知 with real-time feedback
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