季 (jì): season; quarter

Meanings

1 season; quarter
2 the last month of a season
3 youngest brother

Characters

季

jì

season; quarter

Examples

一年有四季。

Yī nián yǒu sìjì.

A year has four seasons.

这是第三季的最后一集。

Zhè shì dìsān jì de zuìhòu yī jí.

This is the last episode of season three.

雨季快到了。

Yǔjì kuài dào le.

The rainy season is coming soon.

Tips

usage

季 is used for TV show seasons (第一季, season 1), sports seasons, and weather seasons. For the four seasons: 春季, 夏季, 秋季, 冬季.

Components

radical

子 zǐ

child (radical)

Bottom child radical — the indexing radical. Originally 季 meant 'youngest sibling' (born late in the cycle, like the late grain), anchoring the birth-order sense. The 'season, quarter' meaning extends from 'last in the cycle' to 'part of the cycle.' Same radical in 学, 孩, 孙.

semantic

禾 hé

standing grain (semantic)

Top grain — pictographically a head of ripe grain bending over with weight. Anchors 季 within the agricultural cycle: seasons in classical China were named by the grain's stage (春耕夏耘秋收冬藏 — plough in spring, weed in summer, harvest in autumn, store in winter). The grain is the timekeeper.