HSK 6 · Verbs

口气 kǒuqì “tone of voice” in Chinese

Traditional 口氣

What 口气 means

  1. tone of voice
  2. manner of speaking
  3. the way one speaks
  4. manner of expression
  5. tone

How to say 口气

  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale口kǒu3rd tone, dipping
  • Pitch chart of the fourth tone: falls from high to low, 5 to 1 on the five-level scale气qì4th tone, falling

口气 in a sentence

  1. 我不喜欢你和我说话的口气。

    Wǒ bù xǐhuan nǐ hé wǒ shuōhuà de kǒuqì.

    I don’t like the tone you’re using with me.

    Sentence #5288506 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  2. 贝蒂说话的口气像是她知道了一切。

    Bèidì shuōhuà de kǒuqì xiàng shì tā zhīdao le yíqiè.

    Betty talks as if she knows everything.

    Sentence #875121 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  3. 口气 can also mean “breath”, as in 松了一口气 (to breathe a sigh of relief)

    我听到消息松了一口气。

    Wǒ tīngdào xiāoxi sōng le yì kǒuqì.

    I breathed a sigh of relief when I heard the news.

    Sentence #1397332 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

How 口气 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 口 (kǒu) with each of its parts in a different colour
口kǒumouth
  • 冂down box · jiōng
  • 一one · yī

Memory aidDrawn from an open mouth.

The character 气 (qì) drawn as one shape
气qìgas; air

气 is a single shape of 4 strokes. Learn it whole, then watch its stroke order below.

Memory aidDrawn from layers of vapour rising: air, steam, breath.

How to write 口气

口 3 strokes · 气 4 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

口气 (kǒuqì) stroke order chart: each stroke of the characters in the order you write them
Stroke order chart for 口气 (kǒuqì). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 口气

Words with 口

门口ménkǒu · doorway口kǒu · mouth路口lùkǒu · intersection入口rùkǒu · entrance口味kǒuwèi · taste胃口wèikǒu · appetite借口jièkǒu · to use as an excuse出口chūkǒu · exit进口jìnkǒu · to import人口rénkǒu · population

Words with 气

天气tiānqì · weather不客气bú kèqi · you’re welcome生气shēngqì · angry气qì · air力气lìqi · strength空气kōngqì · air气候qìhòu · climate脾气píqi · temper淘气táoqì · naughty小气xiǎoqì · stingy

More words: Thinking & Talking

看待kàndài · to regard侃侃而谈kǎnkǎn'értán · to speak with ease and confidence恐吓kǒnghè · to threaten空想kōngxiǎng · fantasy口头kǒutóu · oral口音kǒuyīn · accent唠叨láodao · to nag联络liánluò · to contact

FAQs

口气 (kǒuqì) means “tone of voice” or “manner of speaking”. It is an HSK 6 word.
Say it kǒuqì: kǒu with a 3rd tone, then qì with a 4th tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
In Traditional characters, used in Taiwan and Hong Kong, 口气 is written 口氣. The pronunciation is the same.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type kouqi with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 口气 from the suggestions. Typing kouqi into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
口气 is an HSK 6 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

Turn words into conversations

A dictionary gives you the words. A native teacher shows you how to use them. Start with a free 30-minute intro call.

Book a free intro call

Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.