改

gǎi

to change

to alter; to transform; to correct

oneself (己) + strike (攵) = change and correct

攵 is a hand holding a stick, suggesting a corrective strike or prodding action. Together, the idea is: tap yourself into a new shape — alter, correct, reform.

己+攵→改
己OneselfSemantic
攵Hand with a stickSemantic

这个字写错了,你改一下吧。

zhè ge zì xiě cuò le, nǐ gǎi yī xià ba.

This character was written wrong; please correct it.

他决定改掉早上睡懒觉的习惯。

tā juédìng gǎi diào zǎoshang shuì lǎnjiào de xíguàn.

He decided to change his habit of sleeping in every morning.

Words with 改

劳动改造

láo dòng gǎi zào

reeducation through labor

改成

gǎi chéng

to convert

改装

gǎi zhuāng

to change one's costume

改过

gǎi guò

to correct one's errors; to mend one's ways

整改

zhěng gǎi

to reform

批改

pī gǎi

to mark (homework, exam scripts etc)

篡改

cuàn gǎi

to tamper with

改建

gǎi jiàn

to rebuild

更改

gēng gǎi

to alter

游民改造

yóu mín gǎi zào

rehabilitation of displaced persons

过而能改,善莫大焉

guò ér néng gǎi , shàn mò dà yān

If one can change after making a mistake, there is nothing better (idiom)

医改

yī gǎi

reform of the medical system

More characters with 己

忌岂圮屺杞