Chinese word

自己

Pronunciation

Pinyinzì jǐ

Meaning

  • pronounoneself

Example

你应该自己先试一试。nǐ yīng gāi zì jǐ xiān shì yí shì

You should try it yourself first.

Illustration for 自己 (oneself)

More examples

周末我常常自己看书。zhōu mò wǒ cháng cháng zì jǐ kàn shū

On weekends, I often read books myself.

Core concept

The person at the center of an action, feeling, or condition, set apart from everyone else.

Common phrases

  • 自己看书zì jǐ kàn shū

    read books oneself

  • 自己买东西zì jǐ mǎi dōng xī

    buy things oneself

Similar words

本人běn rén: Refers to the person directly concerned with a matter, especially in official or formal situations.
自身zì shēn: Refers to a person themself, emphasizing that an action, quality, or state relates to that person.

Definition in Chinese

指某个人本身，用来强调某个行为、态度或状态属于该人自己，而非别人。zhǐ mǒu gè rén běn shēn yòng lái qiáng diào mǒu gè xíng wéi tài dù huò zhuàng tài shǔ yú gāi rén zì jǐ ér fēi bié rén

Word origin

自己 (zìjǐ, "self") combines 自 (zì, "self"), which grew from an early nose image into a word for the self, with 己 (jǐ, "self"), reinforcing the same idea.

Usage tips

  • English changes reflexive forms according to the person involved, but Chinese keeps one form for all people, so context shows whether it means myself, yourself, or another form.

Other meanings

  • selfpronoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word