麒

qí

noun

Meanings

1 (in 麒麟) qilin, a mythical auspicious beast

Characters

麒

qí

(in 麒麟) qilin

Examples

传说中，麒麟是圣人降临的祥瑞。

Chuánshuō zhōng, qílín shì shèngrén jiànglín de xiángruì.

In legend the qilin is an auspicious creature whose appearance signals a sage.

人们称杰出的孩子为麒麟儿。

Rénmen chēng jiéchū de háizi wéi qílín'ér.

People praise an outstanding child as a prodigy of the family.

Tips

culture

Occurs only in 麒麟 ('qilin'), a benevolent mythical beast with the body of a deer, scales, and a single horn. Its appearance was said to herald a sage or a peaceful age.

Components

radical

鹿 lù

deer

Deer, the radical on the left. The qilin was imagined with a deer-like body, so the deer radical fits, the same family as its partner 麟.

phonetic

其 qí

its; that; phonetic

Supplies the sound qí with an exact match. It is purely phonetic here; the same element gives 棋 (chess) and 旗 (flag).

Stroke Order

麒 qí

麒