How to Write 祢 (mí) — Meaning “You (honorific used for a deity)”

Imagine the deity radical 礻 as a divine altar, and the right part 尔 as a person bowing. The picture is 'You (the deity) are on the altar, and I bow to you.' This reminds you that 祢 means 'You' when speaking to a god.

Be careful to write the left radical as 礻 (with two dots), not 衤 (clothing radical) which has one dot. The right side 尔 has a horizontal hook after the first left-falling stroke. The total stroke count is 9, and the character should be balanced with the left side slightly narrower.

While 社 (shè) and 祀 (sì) also use the 礻 radical, 社 means 'society' or 'shrine' and has 土 (earth) on the right, while 祀 means 'sacrifice' and has 巳 (snake) on the right. 祢 is unique because its right side 尔 gives it the meaning of 'you' (honorific deity).

祢 is very rarely used in daily conversation. It appears almost exclusively in religious contexts, especially in Chinese Christian prayers and hymns to address God with deep reverence. For example, '感谢祢' means 'Thank You (to God).' It carries a sacred tone not used for ordinary people.

Common words containing 祢 include: 祢 (mí) — You (honorific used for a deity); 感谢祢 (gǎn xiè mí) — Thank You (to God).; 属于祢 (shǔ yú mí) — belonging to You (referring to a deity).