岂止 (qǐ zhǐ) — not only; far from; more than

Definition

An emphatic 'not only / far more than' used to stress that something is much bigger or stronger than expected. Pairs with 还 (hái) to add the 'and even more' clause.

verb
not onlyfar frommore than

Examples

  • 岂止，！
    qǐ zhǐ Zhè xiē, hái yǒu gèng duō ne!
    It's not just these — there are even more!
  • 岂止，。
    Wǒ qǐ zhǐ shì gāo xìng, jiǎn zhí shì jī dòng.
    I wasn't just happy — I was absolutely thrilled.
  • 岂止，。
    Tā qǐ zhǐ huì zhōng wén, hái huì rì yǔ hé yīng yǔ.
    He not only knows Chinese, but also Japanese and English.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

岂qǐhow
止zhǐstop

The rhetorical 岂 meaning how and 止 meaning stop suggest that something cannot stop at that point.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 岂 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

止 was drawn as a footprint pointing up, with three toes and a sole, originally showing a foot.

Open 止 →

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