止

Tap the pinyin to hear it

to stop; to prohibit; until; only

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HSK 3.0: Level 3
Old HSK: Level 4
Strokes: 4
Radical: 止 itself
Structure: Overlaid 叠加
Traditional: 止
Common rank: #927
Unicode: U+6B62

Sound it out + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

How 止 is formed

Pictograph (象形字)

A foot

Components 上丨

How to remember it

stop · Heisig RSH #379

— as a component also called: stop, footprint, trail of footprints

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

Words with 止

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
生命不息，战斗不止	shēng mìng bù xī , zhàn dòu bù zhǐ	while there is life, the fight continues (idiom); to fight to the last
心如止水	xīn rú zhǐ shuǐ	to be at peace with oneself
不止一次	bù zhǐ yī cì	many times; on more than one occasion
到目前为止	dào mù qián wéi zhǐ	until now; so far
古文观止	Gǔ wén Guān zhǐ	Guwen Guanzhi, an anthology of essays written in Literary Chinese, compiled and edited by …
地球静止卫星	dì qiú jìng zhǐ wèi xīng	(astronomy) geostationary satellite
学无止境	xué wú zhǐ jìng	no end to learning (idiom); There's always something new to study.; You live and learn.
不止	bù zhǐ	incessantly; without end; more than; not limited to
中止	zhōng zhǐ	to cease; to suspend; to break off; to stop; to discontinue
行止	xíng zhǐ	movements; attitude; behavior; whereabouts; tracks
树欲静而风不止	shù yù jìng ér fēng bù zhǐ	lit. the trees long for peace but the wind will never cease (idiom); fig. the world change…
无休无止	wú xiū wú zhǐ	ceaseless; endless (idiom)
全面禁止核试验条约	Quán miàn Jìn zhǐ Hé shì yàn Tiáo yuē	Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
止点	zhǐ diǎn	(mechanical engineering) dead point; dead center
无止尽	wú zhǐ jìn	endless
没有止尽	méi yǒu zhǐ jìn	endless
全面禁止	quán miàn jìn zhǐ	complete prohibition; total ban
制止	zhì zhǐ	to curb; to put a stop to; to stop; to check; to limit
为止	wéi zhǐ	until; (used in combination with words like 到[dao4] or 至[zhi4] in constructs of the form 到…
止血	zhǐ xuè	to staunch (bleeding); hemostatic (drug)

Sound family

These characters use 止 as their sound component — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
止 sound part	zhǐ	to stop, to halt; to detain; to desist
此	cǐ	this, these; in this case, then
扯	chě	to rip, to tear; to haul; casual talk
址	zhǐ	location, site; the foundation of a house
耻	chǐ	shame, humiliation; ashamed
趾	zhǐ	toe; tracks, footprints
芷	zhǐ	an angelica herb
祉	zhǐ	blessings, happiness, good luck