How to Write 睚 (yá) — Meaning “Eye socket; to stare.”

Imagine someone staring so hard that their eye (目) goes over a cliff (厓 — which looks like a cliff with rocks). The cliff is the right part 厓, and you can remember that a furious stare might make your eyes feel like they are hanging over the edge.

Pay attention to the balance: the left 目 must be narrow and tall, not wide, and the right part 厓 has a cliff-like top (厂) with two soil layers (土 and 土) underneath. Common mistakes include making the eye too wide or misplacing the two earth components — they should stack neatly under the cliff.

睚 (yá) focuses on the eye socket or a furious stare, while 眦 (zì) specifically means the corner of the eye or canthus. 眭 (suī or guì) is a rare character meaning to stare or with a different pronunciation — visually, 眦 has 此 (this) on the right, 眭 has 圭 (jade), and 睚 has 厓 (cliff).

睚 is rarely used alone; it appears almost exclusively in idioms like 睚眦必报 (yá zì bì bào), meaning to seek revenge for the smallest grievance. This phrase comes from ancient stories of people holding grudges over a mere angry glare, and it is still used today to describe someone who is extremely vindictive.

Common words containing 睚 include: 睚眦 (yá zì) — A furious stare; a small grudge.; 睚眦必报 (yá zì bì bào) — To seek revenge for even the smallest grievance.; 睚眦之怨 (yá zì zhī yuàn) — A minor grudge; a petty grievance..