客气 (kè qi) — how to say "polite" in Chinese

客气

Polite; to stand on ceremony

adjective · verb

Character composition

客

guest

气

air, spirit

Radicals / Keys

宀

Roof

#40 · mián · 3 strokes

气

Steam

#84 · qì · 4 strokes

Synonyms

Collocations

客气一点

kèqi yīdiǎn

a bit more polite

客气的态度

kèqi de tàidu

a courteous attitude

Examples

他对我这么客气,让我有点不好意思。

He is so polite to me that I feel a bit embarrassed.

你太客气了。

You are too polite.

Writing

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Frequently asked questions

How to say polite in Mandarin?

"polite" in Chinese is 客气 (kè qi).

客气 meaning in English

客气 (kè qi) means "Polite; to stand on ceremony".

How is 客气 pronounced?

It is pronounced kè qi (written as ke qi, keqi). You can listen to the pronunciation on this page.

Polite in Chinese character

It is written 客气: 客 has 9 strokes, 气 has 4 strokes. The Writing section above animates the stroke order of each character and lets you trace it.

What HSK 3.0 level is 客气?

客气 is on the HSK 3.0 level 4 word list. It is not part of the six-level HSK 2.0 lists.

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Grammar with 客气

More HSK 3.0 level 4 words