起居 (qǐ jū) — daily life (especially daily routines and habits like sleeping, waking, and personal care)

Definition

起居 refers to one's daily routine — sleeping, waking, eating, personal care. A more literary term than 生活, common in formal contexts like elder care (照顾起居) or 起居室 ('living room').

noun
daily life (especially daily routines and habits like sleeping, waking, and personal care)

Examples

  • 起居，。
    Tā de qǐ jū hěn yǒu guī lǜ, měi tiān shí diǎn shuì jiào liù diǎn qǐ chuáng.
    His daily routine is very regular — he goes to bed at ten and gets up at six every day.
  • ，。
    Zhè jiān qǐ jū shì hěn kuān chang, yáng guāng chōng zú.
    This living room is very spacious and gets plenty of sunlight.
  • 起居。
    Lǎo rén jia xū yào yǒu rén zhào gù qǐ jū.
    The elderly need someone to take care of their daily needs.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

起qǐrise
居jūlive

起 means rise, and 居 means live, together referring to daily routines.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
走走zǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
巳
巳sì起qǐ
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

起 is made from 走 and 巳: 走 is the part connected with walking or running, and 巳 gives the sound.

Open 起 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
尸尸shī
Sound part声符shēngfú
古
古gǔ居jū
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

居 is built from 尸 as the meaning part and 古 (gǔ) as the sound part.

Open 居 →

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