How to Write 似 (shì/sì) — Meaning “to seem; to be like”

Picture a person (亻) standing next to a road sign that says '以' (which looks like an arrow pointing forward). This person seems to be following the sign, so 似 means 'to seem' or 'to be like'—imagine the person looks like they are going the same way.

Write the left radical 亻 first (a short left-slanting stroke, then a vertical stroke). Then write the right part 以: start with a horizontal fold, then a dot inside, then a left-slanting stroke, and finally a dot. A common mistake is writing the right side too wide or confusing 以 with 已 (yǐ, already)—remember that 以 has a dot inside the top loop.

似 (shì) means 'to seem' or 'similar,' while 什 (shí) means 'what' or 'ten' and 仁 (rén) means 'benevolence' or 'kindness.' Visually, 似 has the right part 以 (6 strokes total), 什 has the simple 十 (4 strokes), and 仁 has 二 (4 strokes). Their meanings are completely unrelated, so check the right side to tell them apart.

似 often appears in the word 似乎 (sì hū, 'it seems') to express uncertainty, as in Tā sìhū hěn máng (他似乎很忙, 'He seems very busy'). It is also used in 相似 (xiāng sì, 'similar') and with 似的 (shì de) after nouns or adjectives to mean 'like,' for example, tā fēi yīyàng de (他飞一样的, 'he flies like the wind'). In culture, 似 appears in poetic phrases like 似水年华 (sì shuǐ nián huá, 'years like water') to describe time passing.

Common words containing 似 include: 似乎 (sì hū) — it seems; apparently; 相似 (xiāng sì) — similar; 似的 (shì de) — as if; like.