经
jīng
- Pinyin
- jīng
- Pinyin (Plain)
- jing
- Tone
- 1
- Strokes
- 8
- Readings
- jīngjingTone: 1surname JingOrder: 0Primary
- Stroke Order Code
- Speed
- Stroke Order Data
- ["M 336 480 Q 281 481 234 480 Q 197 480 216 503 Q 288 623 357 712 Q 373 731 370 739 Q 367 755 325 788 Q 309 803 288 799 Q 276 795 283 779 Q 304 719 189 535 Q 171 514 146 490 Q 127 474 128 462 Q 132 441 147 422 Q 159 410 172 418 Q 202 434 302 451 Q 308 452 315 452 C 345 455 366 480 336 480 Z", "M 315 452 Q 204 310 183 299 Q 170 289 172 275 Q 173 262 200 241 Q 210 228 226 241 Q 286 283 413 327 Q 432 331 435 341 Q 438 351 417 348 Q 353 336 273 313 Q 245 303 263 326 Q 306 384 406 500 Q 436 537 462 559 Q 475 569 468 580 Q 458 599 424 619 Q 408 629 398 626 Q 388 623 390 607 Q 391 570 336 480 L 315 452 Z", "M 127 105 Q 114 102 113 91 Q 113 78 124 70 Q 149 57 186 42 Q 196 41 208 51 Q 236 81 399 184 Q 421 197 438 214 Q 450 224 449 233 Q 443 237 430 234 Q 178 111 127 105 Z", "M 697 551 Q 731 587 765 629 Q 786 657 821 686 Q 837 696 832 707 Q 831 717 767 742 Q 748 752 728 739 Q 656 700 499 679 Q 480 676 493 661 Q 518 642 560 653 Q 633 668 688 681 Q 704 685 710 678 Q 713 672 702 655 Q 636 538 467 410 Q 451 398 466 397 Q 532 397 678 531 L 697 551 Z", "M 678 531 Q 750 480 838 407 Q 856 391 870 388 Q 879 388 885 399 Q 895 412 877 452 Q 858 506 697 551 C 668 559 654 548 678 531 Z", "M 647 321 Q 809 349 814 353 Q 824 362 819 371 Q 812 384 781 393 Q 756 399 645 371 Q 564 359 516 355 Q 476 351 504 331 Q 546 304 607 315 L 647 321 Z", "M 656 100 Q 669 241 676 267 Q 685 291 647 321 C 624 340 598 344 607 315 Q 616 294 614 187 Q 613 150 611 96 C 610 66 653 70 656 100 Z", "M 611 96 Q 514 89 402 79 Q 380 78 396 59 Q 409 43 429 37 Q 451 30 469 34 Q 658 73 930 53 Q 952 52 957 61 Q 964 74 947 89 Q 892 134 852 126 Q 779 114 656 100 L 611 96 Z"]
- Meaning
- “经” most commonly means “to pass through” or “to go by,” and from this it also means “to experience” (e.g., 经历) and “to manage” (as in 经济, “economy”). It can also mean a “classic text” or “scripture” (like 经典, “classic; canonical work”).
- Metadata
- Locale: enCached At: 3/24/2026, 8:47:18 AM
Usage
“经” is very common in modern Chinese and learners usually first meet it in words about “through” or “experience/process.” For example, 经过 (jīngguò, to pass through; after), 经历 (jīnglì, to experience; experience), and 已经 (yǐjīng, already). In these, “经” carries the idea of passing through time, space, or events. It can also appear with similar meanings in phrases like 经常 (jīngcháng, often/regularly) where it suggests something happening continually over time. Learners also see “经” in more specialized but still common contexts. It’s used for “classics” or authoritative texts, as in 经济 (jīngjì, economy/economics — literally “manage the classics”), 经典 (jīngdiǎn, classic/classical), and 经文 (jīngwén, scripture), where it hints at something standard or canonical. In business or admin language, it appears in words like 经理 (jīnglǐ, manager) and 经营 (jīngyíng, to run/operate a business), where it takes on the sense of managing or handling affairs in an orderly way.
Handwriting Notes
经 in handwriting usually appears as a relatively compact, slightly rectangular character with the “thread” radical 纟 on the left and a more open, crossing structure on the right. The left side often gets simplified and compressed: the top short stroke and the following descending stroke can connect smoothly, and the last stroke can curve slightly, so it flows as a quick three-part unit. On the right side, the central vertical and the diagonal strokes may be written with different angles or lengths depending on speed and personal style, sometimes making the interior look tighter or more stretched. In casual writing, strokes may join or be slightly omitted, and proportions (such as how tall the right side is compared to the left) can vary, but it usually remains easy to distinguish by its “thread + crossing” look. Modern AI handwriting recognition systems are trained to handle these variations in stroke shape, connection, and proportion so they can correctly identify 经 even when written quickly or with an individual’s distinctive style.
Description
经 is a common simplified Chinese character meaning “to pass through,” “to manage,” or “classic scripture,” depending on context. It appears in words like 经过 (to pass, go through), 经理 (manager), and 经济 (economy). It is often used as a verb or part of a compound, and its specific meaning is determined by the surrounding words.
Common Words
- 经jing1classics
- 经由jing1 you2via
- 曾经ceng2 jing1once
- 经线jing1 xian4warp
- 真经zhen1 jing1sutra
Example Sentences
我喜欢经。
wo3 xi3 huan5 jing1
I like classics.
经由很常见。
jing1 you2 hen3 chang2 jian4
经由 is very common.
我们在学习曾经。
wo3 men5 zai4 xue2 xi2 ceng2 jing1
We are learning once.
这个经线很重要。
zhe4 ge5 jing1 xian4 hen3 zhong4 yao4
This warp is important.
请写一下“经”。
qing3 xie3 yi1 xia4 jing1
Please write '经'.