How to Write 姒 (sì) — Meaning “elder brother's wife (archaic); a surname”

Imagine a woman (女) who is "using" (以) her seniority as the eldest sister-in-law to guide the younger wives. The right side 以 looks like a person with arms raised, giving orders with authority.

Write the left radical 女 narrow, with the first stroke (撇) crossing the second (撇) correctly. The right side 以 has a dot on top, then a horizontal line, followed by two falling strokes — avoid making the right side too wide. Common mistake is confusing the dot position in 以.

姒 has 女 on left and 以 on right (elder brother's wife), whereas 奴 has 女 and 又 (hand) meaning slave, and 奶 has 女 and 乃 meaning milk/breast. The right components are visually distinct: 以, 又, and 乃 each look different.

姒 is very rare today, mostly found in historical names like 褒姒 (Bao Si, a famous beauty) or as a surname. The word 娣姒 (sisters-in-law) is archaic. You will almost never see it in daily conversation, only in classical literature or historical texts.

Common words containing 姒 include: 褒姒 (bāo sì) — Bao Si (a famous beauty of the Zhou Dynasty); 姒 (sì) — elder brother's wife (archaic); a surname; 娣姒 (dì sì) — sisters-in-law (wives of brothers).