How to Write 嫉 (jí) — Meaning “To be jealous; to envy.”

Imagine a woman (女) who is sick with jealousy—the left side is a woman, and the right side 疾 means illness or sickness. So picture a woman feeling ill because she envies someone else’s success. This visual of being "sick with envy" helps link the character to its meaning.

Pay attention to the stroke order: first write the left radical 女 with three strokes (撇点, 撇, 横), then the right side 疾 (start with 疒, then 矢). The key is that 女 is narrow and slanted, while 疾 is wider. A common mistake is making the left side too wide or forgetting the dot on top of 疒.

Unlike 嫉 (jealousy), 娶 (qǔ) means "to marry (a woman)" and 娼 (chāng) means "prostitute." Visually, 娶 has 取 (take) on the right, suggesting taking a wife, while 娼 uses 昌 (prosperous) on the right. Their meanings and components are completely different, so focus on the radical and the right side to tell them apart.

You will see 嫉 mostly in written or formal contexts, especially in the word 嫉妒 (jí dù), meaning "to be jealous." The idiom 嫉恶如仇 (jí è rú chóu) means "to hate evil as one hates an enemy" and is used to praise someone with a strong sense of justice. Culturally, expressing 嫉妒 directly can be negative, so Chinese speakers often use it indirectly or in self-deprecating jokes.

Common words containing 嫉 include: 嫉妒 (jí dù) — To be jealous; to envy.; 嫉恨 (jí hèn) — To be jealous and resentful.; 嫉恶如仇 (jí è rú chóu) — To hate evil as one hates an enemy..