始
to begin; to start; then; only then
8 strokes
Dict coverage rank #1,292 U+59CB
How 始 is formed
Phono-semantic compound (形声字)
女 (semantic, “woman”) + 台 (phonetic, tái)
How to remember it
commence · Heisig RSH #674
女 woman + 台 platform
Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.
Phonetic series: characters sharing the sound component 台
Siblings built with the same phonetic component 台 (tái) — compare how they read:
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 台 sound component | tái | platform; unit; term of address |
| 胎 | tāi | embryo, fetus; car tire |
| 抬 | tái | to carry, to lift, to raise |
| 怡 | yí | gladness, joy, pleasure; harmony |
| 苔 | tái | moss, lichen |
| 笞 | chī | bamboo rod used for beatings |
| 贻 | yí | to hand down, to give to, to bequeath |
| 怠 | dài | idle; negligent, remiss; to neglect |
| 殆 | dài | almost, probably; danger, peril; to endanger |
| 饴 | yí | syrup; sweet-meat, sweet-cake |
| 眙 | yí | to gaze at; a place name |
| 鲐 | tái | mackerel; Pneumatophorus japonicus |
| 跆 | tái | to trample, to kick |
| 炱 | tái | soot |
| 绐 | dài | to pretend, to fool, to cheat |
| 诒 | yí | to bequeath, to pass on |
| 迨 | dài | while, until; to seize, to arrest |
| 邰 | tái | a state in Shanxi province; surname |
| 骀 | tái | tired old horse; tired, exhaused |
Words containing 始
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 千里之行，始于足下 | qiān lǐ zhī xíng , shǐ yú zú xià | lit. a thousand mile journey begins with the first step; fig. big accomplishments come fro… |
| 重新开始 | chóng xīn kāi shǐ | to resume; to restart; to start afresh |
| 原始热带雨林 | yuán shǐ rè dài yǔ lín | virgin tropical rainforest |
| 报本反始 | bào běn fǎn shǐ | ensure that you pay debts of gratitude (idiom) |
| 一元复始 | yī yuán fù shǐ | a new year begins (idiom) |
| 原始人 | yuán shǐ rén | primitive man; prehistoric human |
| 原始社会 | yuán shǐ shè huì | primitive society |
| 始新世 | Shǐ xīn shì | Eocene (geological epoch from 55m-34m years ago) |
| 原始林 | yuán shǐ lín | old growth forest; primary forest; original forest cover |
| 始业式 | shǐ yè shì | school opening ceremony (to mark the start of a semester) (Tw) |
| 周而复始 | zhōu ér fù shǐ | lit. the cycle comes back to the start (idiom); to move in circles; the wheel comes full c… |
| 始兴县 | Shǐ xīng Xiàn | Shixing, a county in Shaoguan City 韶關市|韶关市[Shao2 guan1 Shi4], Guangdong |
| 有始无终 | yǒu shǐ wú zhōng | to start but not finish (idiom); to fail to carry things through; lack of sticking power; … |
| 有始有终 | yǒu shǐ yǒu zhōng | where there's a start, there's a finish (idiom); to finish once one starts sth; to carry t… |
| 摩登原始人 | Mó dēng Yuán shǐ rén | The Flintstones (TV Series) |
| 始终如一 | shǐ zhōng rú yī | unswerving from start to finish (idiom) |
| 始新统 | shǐ xīn tǒng | Eocene system (geology) |
| 建始县 | Jiàn shǐ Xiàn | Jianshi, a county in Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture 恩施土家族苗族自治州[En1 shi1 Tu3 ji… |
| 自始 | zì shǐ | from the outset; ab initio |
| 始发 | shǐ fā | (of trains etc) to set off (on a journey); to start (being issued or circulated); to start… |