几 (jǐ) is a Chinese character meaning “how many”. It is written from 丿 (left-falling stroke) and 乙 (second Heavenly Stem), side by side, and takes 2 strokes. It has a second reading, jī, which turns up in 几乎 — here the two readings are two separate things to learn, not one card with two answers.
Build the character for “how many; a few”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
丿 + 乙
Left–right structure
Structure from: makemeahanzi dictionary modern decomposition candidate, verified against hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 stroke paths
Memory aid
Place the left-falling stroke (丿) beside the bent stroke (乙) to form 几.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
2 strokes
In real words
- 几个jǐ gehow many; a few几 = jǐ
Go deeper
All readings
how many; several
how many; a few; several
询问数量；也表示数量不多的若干。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 几个jǐ gehow many; a few几 = jǐ
nearly
nearly; almost (used in 几乎)
用于「几乎」，表示十分接近。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 几乎jī hūalmost; nearly几 = jī
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 几 mean?
几 (jǐ) means how many; a few; several.
How do you pronounce 几?
Its main reading is jǐ. It also has a second reading, jī, which only shows up in certain words such as 几乎 — so the word tells you the reading, not the character on its own.
Why is 几 sometimes pronounced jī?
Because it is a multi-reading character: each reading carries a different sense, and the word decides which one applies. In 几乎 it is read jī.
What parts is 几 made of?
丿 (left-falling stroke) and 乙 (second Heavenly Stem), side by side. The recorded source is: makemeahanzi dictionary modern decomposition candidate, verified against hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 stroke paths. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 几 have?
2. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 几?
几. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 几?
Common ones are 几个. The reading of 几 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.