How to Write 呲 (cī/zī) — Meaning “to bare (one's teeth)”

Imagine a mouth (口) that says 'This (此) is how I show my teeth!' while baring teeth with a hissing sound like 'ci'. The pinyin 'cī' sounds like 'see' — picture someone saying 'See my teeth!' to remember the meaning.

Write the left radical 口 (3 strokes) first, making it small and narrow. The right part 此 has 6 strokes: start with the top 止 strokes, then finish with 匕 (a short left-slanting stroke and a hook). A common mistake is making the 口 too big or mixing up the order of the last two strokes in 此.

Unlike 呲, which has the mouth radical on the left and means 'to bare teeth', 君 (jūn) has 尹 on the right and means 'ruler' or 'lord'. 吝 (lìn) has 文 on top of 口 and means 'stingy'. Visually, 呲 has 此 on the right, while 君 has 尹, and 吝 has a different top component.

呲 appears in the common word 呲牙 (cī yá), meaning 'to bare one's teeth', often describing animals or a fierce grin. It is also used in the colloquial phrase 挨呲 (āi cī), which means 'to get a scolding'. Culturally, the expression 呲牙咧嘴 (cī yá liě zuǐ) describes an ugly or ferocious facial expression.

Common words containing 呲 include: 呲牙 (zī yá) — to bare one's teeth; 挨呲 (āi cī) — get a scolding; 呲 (cī) — to bare (one's teeth).