HSK 6 · Function Words

起码 qǐmǎ “at least” in Chinese

Said as qímǎ

Traditional 起碼

What 起码 means

  1. at least
  2. minimum
  3. at the minimum
  4. at the very least

How to say 起码

  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale起qǐ3rd tone, dipping
  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale码mǎ3rd tone, dipping

Said as qímǎ. When two third tones meet, the first one rises into a second tone. You still write it with two third tones. How tone changes work

起码 in a sentence

  1. 这张沙发起码可以坐三个人。

    Zhè zhāng shāfā qǐmǎ kěyǐ zuò sān ge rén.

    This sofa can seat at least three people.

    Sentence #787292 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

  2. 他每天起码会看一部电影。

    Tā měitiān qǐmǎ huì kàn yí bù diànyǐng.

    He watches at least one film a day.

    Sentence #10365093 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  3. 汤姆起码比我高一个头。

    Tāngmǔ qǐmǎ bǐ wǒ gāo yí ge tóu.

    Tom is at least a head taller than me.

    Sentence #10332961 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

How 起码 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 起 (qǐ) with each of its parts in a different colour
起qǐto rise
  • 走walk · zǒuMeaning part
  • 己self · jǐSound part

走 hints at the meaning (walk); 己 (jǐ) hints at the sound. Compare it with qǐ.

The character 码 (mǎ) with each of its parts in a different colour
码mǎagate
  • 石stone · shíMeaning part
  • 马horse · mǎSound part

石 hints at the meaning (stone); 马 (mǎ) hints at the sound. Compare it with mǎ.

How to write 起码

起 10 strokes · 码 8 strokes

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

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

Words related to 起码

Words with 起

对不起duìbuqǐ · sorry一起yìqǐ · together起床qǐchuáng · to get up起qǐ · to rise起飞qǐfēi · take off in an aeroplane起来qǐlai · beginning or continuing an action引起yǐnqǐ · to give rise to看不起kànbuqǐ · to look down upon了不起liǎobuqǐ · amazing起初qǐchū · at first

Words with 码

密码mìmǎ · cipher号码hàomǎ · number数码shùmǎ · digital码头mǎtou · dock

More words: Function Words & Grammar

偏偏piānpiān · unexpectedly譬如pìrú · for example颇pō · rather恰巧qiàqiǎo · by chance仍旧réngjiù · still人家rénjia · other people任意rènyì · at will日益rìyì · increasingly

FAQs

起码 (qǐmǎ) means “at least” or “minimum”. It is an HSK 6 word.
Say it qǐmǎ: qǐ with a 3rd tone, then mǎ with a 3rd tone. In speech it sounds like qímǎ. When two third tones meet, the first one rises into a second tone. You still write it with two third tones. 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, 起码 is written 起碼. The pronunciation is the same.
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type qima with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 起码 from the suggestions. Typing qima into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
起码 is an HSK 6 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

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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.