企

Mandarin · pinyin qǐ

Meanings

  1. (bound form) to stand on tiptoe and look; to anticipate; to look forward to
  2. (bound form) company; firm; enterprise; corporation (abbr. for 企業 qǐ yè)
  3. Taiwan pr. qì
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Characters in this entry

企
qǐ · plan a project; stand on tiptoe
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

3 · qi3

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 8 senses · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

kei2 · kei5

Cantonese word readings for 企. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

character · Etymology 1

  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to stand on one's tiptoes
  2. (Cantonese, Hakka) to stand
  3. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to expect anxiously
  4. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to plan
  5. (chiefly in compounds) short for 企業/企业 (qǐyè, “enterprise”)
  6. a surname
  7. (Shanghainese) straight; steep

character · Etymology 2

  1. (Cantonese) used in 屋企 (“home”)

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

企 · qi3
CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG · edition 2026-10-13 · source line 6,698
Original dictionary · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source & transformation details
Exact source record企 企 [qi3] /(bound form) to stand on tiptoe and look; to anticipate; to look forward to/(bound form) company; firm; enterprise; corporation (abbr. for 企業|企业[qi3 ye4])/Taiwan pr. [qi4]/