How to Write 忻 (xīn) — Meaning “joyful; happy; delighted”

Picture someone's heart (忄) being so joyful that they lift an axe (斤) and dance with it happily. The mental image of a cheerful person swinging an axe helps connect the components to the meaning 'joyful'.

Start with the vertical stroke of the heart radical on the left, then write the two dots. For the right side 斤, write the sweeping left-down stroke first, then the horizontal, vertical, and final short diagonal stroke. A common mistake is making the left radical too wide; keep it narrow so the whole character stays balanced.

忻 has 斤 on the right and means 'joyful', while 忉 has 刀 (knife) on the right and means 'worried' or 'sorrowful'. 忏 has 千 on the right and means 'to repent'. Visually, the right-side component (斤 vs 刀 vs 千) is the key difference.

忻 is a literary character used in formal or poetic contexts to express joy, such as in the words 忻然 (joyfully) and 忻悦 (delighted). It often appears in descriptive phrases in classical-style writing or personal names, but it is not common in everyday spoken Chinese.

Common words containing 忻 include: 忻然 (xīn rán) — joyfully; happily; 忻悦 (xīn yuè) — joyful; delighted; 欣忻 (xīn xīn) — Joyful.