chi

[ kahy ]

/ kaɪ /

noun, plural chis.

the twenty-second letter of the Greek alphabet (X, χ).

the consonant sound represented by this letter.

Origin of chi

From Greek

chi

[ chee ]

/ tʃi /

noun Wade-Giles.

qi.

Chi

[ chahy ]

/ tʃaɪ /

noun

Chicago.

Origin of Chi

by shortening

qi

[ chœ ]

/ tʃœ /

noun Pinyin.

(in traditional Chinese medicine and philosophy) the vital life force that flows through the body and is supposedly regulated by acupuncture.

Also Wade-Giles, chi.

Origin of qi

From the Chinese word qì breath

Ch'i

[ chyee ]

/ tʃyi /

noun

one of two dynasties that ruled in China a.d. 479–502 and, as the Northern Ch'i, a.d. 550–77.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for chi

Instead of a corsage, he brought me a plastic duck he'd stolen from a Chi Chi's restaurant.
Let Us Now Praise Famous Rednecks and Their Unjustly Unsung Kin|Allison Glock|August 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
By now I'm so overwrought with chi's and fu's and kong's and kung's that my eyes have about crossed.
The Stacks: The Neville Brothers Stake Their Claim as Bards of the Bayou|John Ed Bradley|April 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In Chobits, hapless waiter Hideki ends up purchasing a “persocom,” an android called Chi, and slowly falls in love with her.
Hollywood Sci-Fi Films Are Ripping Off Anime|David Levesley|April 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Chi, like Samantha (Scarlett Johannson), ends up becoming a transcendent being that threatens her relationship with a human.
Hollywood Sci-Fi Films Are Ripping Off Anime|David Levesley|April 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Alfonso Signorini, editor of Chi magazine, has defended his decision to print the images.
Why William is Powerless To Protest New Kate Pics|Tom Sykes|February 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
I am sure it would not be for my happiness to change it, 'Chi non ha provato il male non conosce il bone.'
My Novel, Complete|Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Chi va piano, va sano, chi va sano va lontano—He who goes softly goes safely, and he who goes safely goes far.
Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources|James Wood
“Chi va piano va sano,” he remarked at last, with a derisive glance over the side, in ironic allusion to our own tremendous speed.
The Mirror of the Sea|Joseph Conrad
Salutatemi, bella, lo scrivano;Non lo conosco e non so chi si sia.A me mi pare un poeta sovrano,Tanto gli è sperto nella poesia.
Sketches and Studies in Italy and Greece, Second Series|John Addington Symonds
Chi niente sa, di niente dubita—He who knows nothing, doubts nothing.
Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources|James Wood

British Dictionary definitions for chi

chi

/ (kaɪ) /

noun

the 22nd letter of the Greek alphabet (Χ, χ), a consonant, transliterated as ch or rarely kh

noun

(sometimes capital) (in Oriental medicine, martial arts, etc) vital energy believed to circulate round the body in currents

Word Origin for chi

Chinese, literally: energy

qi

/ (tʃiː) /

noun

a variant of chi 2

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for chi

chi

22nd letter of the Greek alphabet, representing a -kh- sound (see ch). The letter is shaped like an X, and so the Greek letter name was used figuratively to signify such a shape or arrangement (e.g. khiasma "two things placed crosswise;" khiastos "arranged diagonally; marked with an X;" khiazein "to mark with an 'X', to write the letter 'X'"). Some dialects used chi to represent the -ks- sound properly belonging to xi; Latin picked this up and the sound value of chi in Latin-derived alphabets is now that of English X.

qi

"physical life force," 1850, from Chinese qi "air, breath."

chi

noun, plural chis.

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Nearby words

Origin of chi

chi

noun Wade-Giles.

Chi

noun

Origin of Chi

qi

noun Pinyin.

Origin of qi

Ch'i

noun

Examples from the Web for chi

chi

noun

noun

Word Origin for chi

qi

noun

chi

qi