How to Write 居 (jū) — Meaning “to reside; to live”

Imagine a person (尸) living in an old (古) house — the ancient part reminds you that this person has been residing there for a long time. Picture the roof (尸) over the old home to visualize the character.

Start with the radical 尸 (three strokes: horizontal fold, left-slanting stroke, then the last horizontal). Then write 古 (five strokes: horizontal, vertical, horizontal, vertical, horizontal fold hook). A common mistake is making the top 尸 too wide; keep it narrow so the lower 古 is balanced.

尽 (jìn, to exhaust) has the radical 尸 on top but below is 尺 (ruler), not 古. 尾 (wěi, tail) has 尸 on top but below is 毛 (hair or feather), meaning tail. 居 specifically means to reside, while 尽 means to use up and 尾 means a tail or end.

居 is common in words like 居住 (to reside) and 邻居 (neighbor). It often appears in formal or written contexts for dwelling, and in the surprising adverb 居然 (unexpectedly), which comes from the idea of 'residing in a situation' that is contrary to expectation.

Common words containing 居 include: 居住 (jū zhù) — to reside; to dwell; 邻居 (lín jū) — neighbor; 居然 (jū rán) — unexpectedly; surprisingly.