其 (qí) is the classical third-person possessive — "his, her, its, their" — and, by a short stretch, the demonstrative "that." What makes it worth a page is not that you will speak it (you almost never will), but that it is welded into a cluster of extremely common words: 其中 (among them), 其实 (actually), 尤其 (especially), 其他 (other), 其次 (secondly), 与其 (rather than). Learn 其 as the fixed first syllable of these chunks and you unlock a big slice of both everyday and written Chinese. This page is part of the classical particle residue family; where 之 (zhī) is the literary "of," 其 is the literary "its."
其 already means "its / their" — it swallows 的
The single most useful fact about 其 is that it is a pronoun and its 的 fused into one syllable. English splits "he / his," "it / its," "they / their"; Chinese speech splits them too (他 → 他的, 它 → 它的, 他们 → 他们的). But 其 collapses all of that — gender, number, and the possessive 的 — into one written character. So 其 = 他的 = 她的 = 它的 = 他们的, and you never write 其的.
| Spoken Chinese | Literary 其 | English |
|---|---|---|
| 他的 (tā de) | 其 (qí) | his |
| 它的 (tā de) | 其 (qí) | its |
| 他们的 (tāmen de) | 其 (qí) | their |
| 那 / 那件事 (nà / nà jiàn shì) | 其 (qí) | that / that matter |
This living possessive is the workhorse of written and news Chinese, where 其 keeps prose compact:
这家公司发展迅速，其产品远销海外。
zhè jiā gōngsī fāzhǎn xùnsù, qí chǎnpǐn yuǎnxiāo hǎiwài
This company is growing fast; its products sell all over the world. (formal, written) — 其 = 它的 (the company's).
公司会尽其所能满足客户的需求。
gōngsī huì jìn qí suǒ néng mǎnzú kèhù de xūqiú
The company will do its utmost to meet clients' needs. (formal) — 尽其所能 = 'exhaust its capability,' 其 = its.
这样安排，大家各得其所，都很满意。
zhèyàng ānpái, dàjiā gè dé qí suǒ, dōu hěn mǎnyì
Arranged this way, everyone ends up in their right place and is happy. (neutral-formal) — 各得其所, 其 = their.
其 as "that" — the demonstrative in set phrases
A second classical job of 其 is demonstrative "that / that very one," surviving inside four-character idioms (成语, chéngyǔ). Here 其 points back to a thing just mentioned:
这个传闻确有其事。
zhège chuánwén què yǒu qí shì
This rumor is actually true. (neutral-formal) — 确有其事 = 'there really is that matter,' 其 = that.
他是个名副其实的专家。
tā shì ge míng fù qí shí de zhuānjiā
He's an expert worthy of the name. (neutral) — 名副其实 = 'the name matches its reality,' 其 = its.
你这样逼他只会适得其反。
nǐ zhèyàng bī tā zhǐ huì shì dé qí fǎn
Pressuring him like this will only backfire. (informal) — 适得其反 = 'get exactly its opposite,' 其 = its.
The 其-compounds you actually use every day
For most learners, 其 earns its keep as the frozen first syllable of high-frequency connectives and quantifiers. Some are formal, several are completely everyday. Learn each as one word:
| Word | Meaning | Register |
|---|---|---|
| 其中 (qízhōng) | among them / of which | everyday |
| 其实 (qíshí) | actually, in fact | everyday |
| 尤其 (yóuqí) | especially | everyday |
| 其他 / 其它 (qítā) | other, the rest | everyday |
| 其次 (qícì) | secondly, next | neutral |
| 与其 (yǔqí)…不如… | rather than… (it's better to)… | neutral-formal |
我买了五本书，其中三本是小说。
wǒ mǎi le wǔ běn shū, qízhōng sān běn shì xiǎoshuō
I bought five books, three of which are novels. (neutral) — 其中 = 'among them.'
他看起来很凶，其实很好相处。
tā kànqǐlai hěn xiōng, qíshí hěn hǎo xiāngchǔ
He looks fierce, but he's actually easy to get along with. (informal) — 其实 is one of the commonest words in daily speech.
我喜欢水果，尤其是芒果。
wǒ xǐhuan shuǐguǒ, yóuqí shì mángguǒ
I like fruit, especially mango. (informal) — 尤其是 before a noun.
与其在这儿等，不如打个电话问问。
yǔqí zài zhèr děng, bùrú dǎ ge diànhuà wènwen
Rather than waiting here, we'd be better off just calling to ask. (neutral) — 与其…不如… is a fixed pair.
Common Mistakes
1. Using bare 其 as a spoken "his / its." In conversation the possessive is 他的 / 它的 / 他们的; bare 其 sounds like you stepped out of a classical text.
❌ 这是其手机。
Wrong in speech — say 这是他的手机 for 'this is his phone.' Bare 其 belongs to written/frozen Chinese.
✅ 这是他的手机。
zhè shì tā de shǒujī
This is his phone. (neutral) — everyday possessive is 他的.
2. Adding 的 after 其. 其 already is pronoun + 的, so a second 的 is a doubling error.
❌ 尽其的所能
Wrong — 其 already contains the possessive; drop the extra 的. The set phrase is 尽其所能.
✅ 尽其所能
jìn qí suǒ néng
do one's utmost — no 的 after 其.
3. Putting 尤其 directly before a noun without 是. Before a noun phrase, 尤其 needs 是; before a clause it can stand alone.
❌ 我喜欢运动，尤其足球。
Incomplete — before the noun 足球 you need 是: 尤其是足球.
✅ 我喜欢运动，尤其是足球。
wǒ xǐhuan yùndòng, yóuqí shì zúqiú
I like sports, especially football. — 尤其是 + noun.
4. Leaving 与其 without its partner 不如. 与其 is half of a fixed frame; it must be answered by 不如 (or 宁可).
❌ 与其抱怨这么多。
Unfinished — 与其 sets up a comparison that needs 不如: 与其抱怨，不如想办法.
✅ 与其抱怨，不如想办法。
yǔqí bàoyuàn, bùrú xiǎng bànfǎ
Rather than complaining, better to find a solution. — 与其…不如… as a pair.
Key Takeaways
- 其 (qí) is the literary third-person possessive "his / her / its / their," fusing pronoun + 的 into one character — so you never write 其的.
- It is fully alive in written and news Chinese as a compact "its" (其产品 = its products), and in idioms as a demonstrative "that" (确有其事, 名副其实).
- Its biggest payoff is the everyday 其-compounds: 其中 (among them), 其实 (actually), 尤其 (especially), 其他 (other), 其次 (next), 与其 (rather than).
- Recognize, don't compose — don't speak bare 其 for "his / its" (use 他的 / 它的); learn the compounds as whole words.
- Register: bare 其 is written / literary (beyond); several compounds (其实, 尤其, 其中) are completely everyday.
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Start learning Chinese→Related Topics
- Classical Particle Residue in Modern ChineseBeyond — The literary particles 之 / 其 / 所 / 者 / 也 / 乎 / 矣 / 焉 survive in modern Chinese as frozen residue — inside fixed phrases, formal writing, names, and 成语 (chengyu): 三分之一, 其中, 所以, 记者, 心不在焉. You recognize them, you don't compose freely with them.
- 与其…不如… (Rather Than…, Better To…)HSK 5 — 与其…不如… (yǔqí…bùrú) weighs two courses of action and recommends the second: 与其在这儿等，不如现在就走 'rather than wait here, better to leave now'. The rejected option follows 与其, the preferred one follows 不如.
- 其实 — Actually, In FactHSK 3 — 其实 (qíshí) reframes what was just said, flagging a truer picture behind an assumption — 'actually / in fact': 看起来很难，其实很简单 'it looks hard, but it's actually easy'. It sits at the FRONT of its clause, never dangling at the end like English 'actually', and softens a correction so it lands politely rather than bluntly.
- 之 (Classical 之: of / it / one-of)Beyond — 之 (zhī) is the literary counterpart of 的 and of the object pronoun 'it' — alive in fixed forms: possessive 三分之一, 无价之宝; object 总之, 求之不得; connectives 之后, 之前, 之一. You recognize it in written Chinese and set phrases, not in casual speech.