Character: 些 (xiē) some

些
Pinyin xiē
Meaning classifier indicating plurality; some, a few, several
Radical 二 繁體字 same
Two writing patterns can be found in the character 些 (xiē) some: 匕, highlighted in red; and 二, highlighted in yellow 匕
二

writing patterns, not components

Chinese character compound ideographcategory: compound ideograph

Chinese character up down structurestructure: up down

8stroke count

HSK 1

Stroke order of the Chinese character 些 (xiē) some. There are 8 strokes, and the character is written from left to right, then top to bottom

Breakdown

些 (xiē) is a classifier that indicates plurality, which is usually translated as “some.” The component on top is 此 (cǐ) “this.” It works as an indicator, pointing at the people or things mentioned. The other part is 二 (èr) “two,” the radical of this character, and it states the number is more than one, hence plurality.

xiē
些
some		 cǐ
此
this		 cí
雌
female		 zǐ
紫
purple
èr
二
two		 hù
互
mutually		 yà
亚
second

Used as a morpheme/word

些 (xiē) “some” can be used alone as a word, meaning “some,” which is the short form of 一些 (yīxiē).

Wordlist

  • HSK 1: 哪些 (nǎxiē) which
  • HSK 1: 那些 (nàxiē) those
  • HSK 1: 些 (xiē) some
  • HSK 1: 这些 (zhèxiē) these
  • Advanced: 些许 (xiēxǔ) a few

How to pronounce

First have the middle of your tongue bowed and raised towards the roof, then say “s’yeah.”

1st Pinyin Yale IPA
Initial x- sy [ɕ]
Final -ie ye [ɪe]

Chinese character practice sheet

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