膝

厀

xī

月 + 桼

Definitions

xī (noun) knee

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. ⺼ represents the meaning and 桼 represents the sound.

Semantic: ⺼ Phonetic: 桼

About

Formed as a phono-semantic compound, 膝 combines ⺼ (肉, 'flesh'), the semantic component common in body-part characters, with the phonetic 桼 (qī), the original character for 'lacquer'. This pairing of a general anatomical marker and a specific sound yields a dedicated grapheme for the knee joint. Throughout its textual history, the character has consistently denoted the knee without semantic drift, appearing in medical texts, martial arts descriptions, and everyday anatomical references to the joint connecting the thigh and lower leg.

Etymology Hide

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我的膝盖很疼。

Wǒ de xīgài hěn téng.

My knee hurts a lot.

他摔伤了膝盖。

Tā shuāishāng le xīgài.

He injured his knee from a fall.

医生检查了我的膝关节。

Yīshēng jiǎnchá le wǒ de xī guānjié.

The doctor examined my knee joint.

膝盖的疼痛让我难以行走。

Xīgài de téngtòng ràng wǒ nányǐ xíngzǒu.

The pain in my knee makes it hard for me to walk.

我每天做膝盖康复运动。

Wǒ měitiān zuò xīgài kāngfù yùndòng.

I do knee rehabilitation exercises every day.

随着年龄增长，膝盖容易出现问题。

Suízhe niánlíng zēngzhǎng, xīgài róngyì chūxiàn wèntí.

As age increases, knees are prone to problems.

在运动中，保护膝盖非常重要。

Zài yùndòng zhōng, bǎohù xīgài fēicháng zhòngyào.

In sports, protecting the knees is very important.

膝关节的软骨损伤需要长时间恢复。

Xī guānjié de ruǎngǔ sǔnshāng xūyào cháng shíjiān huīfù.

Cartilage damage in the knee joint requires a long time to recover.

Related Characters

Component: 月

Component: 桼

膝