How to Write 眇 (miǎo) — Meaning “tiny; small; one-eyed”

Picture someone with only one eye (目) who sees very little (少) because they are missing an eye. This image links "eye" with "few" to recall both meanings: a one-eyed person or something tiny.

Keep the left radical 目 narrow with four balanced horizontal strokes. On the right, 少 begins with a short vertical stroke, then a left-falling stroke, and two small dots; a common mistake is making 目 too wide or placing the dots incorrectly.

盯 (dīng) means to stare or focus one's gaze, using 丁 as the phonetic part. 盱 (xū) means to open eyes wide, with 于 as phonetic. 眇 instead has 少, emphasizing smallness or being one-eyed, and is not about the intensity of looking.

眇 is uncommon today and appears mostly in literary or classical phrases, such as 眇小 (tiny) or 眇视 (to look down on). It also appears in the I Ching phrase "眇能视" (a one-eyed person can still see), reflecting an ancient cultural idea.

Common words containing 眇 include: 眇小 (miǎo xiǎo) — tiny; insignificant; 眇视 (miǎo shì) — to look with one eye; to look down on; 眇然 (miǎo rán) — minute; remote; tiny.