凄

悽/淒

qī

冫 + 妻

Definitions

qī (adjective) cold; frigid

qī (adjective) dismal; bleak; grim; sad; mournful

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 冫 represents the meaning and 妻 represents the sound. Simplified form of 淒.

Semantic: 冫 Phonetic: 妻

About

凄 is a phono-semantic compound: the radical 冫 (bīng, 'ice') indicates a meaning related to cold, while the component 妻 (qī) provides the sound. The character is the simplified form of 淒, which originally employed the water radical 氵; an alternative traditional variant, 悽, uses the heart radical 忄 to explicitly convey emotional distress. Its primary definition centers on intense, piercing cold and biting chills. This literal cold extends metaphorically to the psychological domain, so 凄 can describe profound sadness, loneliness, misery, and the bleak desolation of abandoned surroundings.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Clerical Western Jin dynasty (266-316 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

冬天的夜晚很凄凉。

Dōngtiān de yèwǎn hěn qīliáng.

Winter nights are very desolate.

他露出了凄惨的笑容。

Tā lùchūle qīcǎn de xiàoróng.

He showed a miserable smile.

雨中的街道显得分外凄凉。

Yǔ zhōng de jiēdào xiǎndé fènwài qīliáng.

The street in the rain appears especially desolate.

战争留下了凄惨的回忆。

Zhànzhēng liú xiàle qīcǎn de huíyì.

The war left behind tragic memories.

凄冷的月光照在空地上。

Qīlěng de yuèguāng zhào zài kòngdì shàng.

The cold and dreary moonlight shines on the empty ground.

她独自一人，感到无比凄楚。

Tā dúzì yī rén, gǎndào wúbǐ qīchǔ.

She is alone and feels immensely sorrowful.

废墟中弥漫着一种凄迷的气氛。

Fèixū zhōng mímàn zhe yī zhǒng qīmí de qìfēn.

A dreary and blurred atmosphere pervades the ruins.

经济萧条给小镇带来了凄凉的景象。

Jīngjì xiāotiáo gěi xiǎo zhèn dàiláile qīliáng de jǐngxiàng.

The economic depression brought a desolate scene to the small town.

Related Characters

Component: 冫

Component: 妻

凄