How to Write 郤 (xì) — Meaning “Xi (a surname)”

Imagine Mr. Xi lives in a valley (谷) next to a hill (阝). The left side looks like a hill, and the right side shows a valley, so you can picture a surname tied to a scenic location. This visual helps link the components to the surname pronunciation "xì."

Start with the left radical 阝: write the horizontal stroke, then a curved hook, and finish with a vertical stroke. Then write the right part 谷: first a left-falling stroke, a dot, another left-falling stroke, a right-falling stroke, then the 口 (mouth) component with three strokes. A common mistake is making the top of 谷 too wide or confusing it with 八; keep the two diagonal strokes balanced.

郤, 邮, and 邯 all share the left radical 阝, but have different right parts. 郤 has 谷 (valley), 邮 has 由 (reason), and 邯 has 甘 (sweet). Visually, the right part of 郤 has a narrow top and a square bottom (口), while 邮 has a vertical line through a box, and 邯 has a flat top. In usage, 郤 is a rare surname, 邮 means "post" or "mail," and 邯 appears in the city name Handan.

郤 is exclusively used as a surname in modern Chinese, and it is quite rare. You will see it in formal contexts like "郤先生" (Mr. Xi) or "郤老师" (Teacher Xi), often when addressing someone with that surname. There are no common words or idioms containing 郤 beyond its use in names.

Common words containing 郤 include: 郤先生 (xì xiān shēng) — Mr. Xi; 郤老师 (xì lǎo shī) — Teacher Xi; 姓郤 (xìng xì) — Surname Xi.