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十几 (shí jǐ) — between ten and twenty; more than ten; about a dozen

Definition

十几 (shí jǐ) means 'more than ten' or 'around a dozen' — a rough estimate of a number in the teens, contrasted with 二十 or 几十 which move into higher ranges.

numeral
between ten and twentymore than tenabout a dozen

Examples

  • 十几。
    Jiào shì lǐ dà yuē yǒu shí jǐ gè xué shēng.
    There are about a dozen students in the classroom.
  • 十几，。
    Wǒ mǎi le shí jǐ běn shū, huā le sān bǎi duō kuài qián.
    I bought over ten books and spent more than 300 yuan.
  • 十几。
    Tā děng le shí jǐ fēn zhōng cái lái.
    He waited more than ten minutes before coming.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

十shíten
几jǐseveral

十 gives the base ten and 几 adds an indefinite few, so the whole means just over ten.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The early shape 十 was mostly a single vertical stroke, sometimes with a dot, and later gained a horizontal stroke to form a cross. For the number ten, it marked the next digit above one.

Open 十 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 幾; 几 is its simplified writing.

  • 𢆶𢆶𢆶silk threads; little things
  • 戍戍shùto guard against

The traditional form 幾 puts 𢆶 (silk threads; little things) and 戍 (to guard against) together to show watching over the fine details; the simplified 几 is a later abbreviation.

Open 几 →
Appears in
Numbers & Counting

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