How to Write 伊 (yī) — Meaning “He, she, or that; often used in transliterations”

Think of a person (亻) who is always saying "Yī" — like the sound "ee" — to point at someone. For example, imagine a person pointing and saying "Yī, that person over there!" The shape of 尹 on the right even looks like a hand pointing with a long finger.

Write the left radical 亻 first: a short left-falling stroke then a vertical stroke (straight down). Then write 尹: start with a horizontal stroke turning down (横折), then two short horizontals, and finally a long left-falling stroke from top to bottom. A common mistake is making the vertical strokes of 亻 and 尹 the same height — the 亻 vertical should be slightly taller.

什 (shén or shí) has 亻 plus 十 (ten) and means "what" or "ten". 仁 (rén) has 亻 plus 二 (two) and means "benevolence" or "kindness". 伊 (yī) has 亻 plus 尹, and it means "he/she/that" or is used in transliterations. Visually, 尹 has a hooked top stroke (横折) and a falling stroke at the bottom, while 十 and 二 are simpler.

伊 is most often used in transliterations of foreign names and terms, such as 伊拉克 (Yīlākè, Iraq) and 伊斯兰 (Yīsīlán, Islam). It also appears in classical or literary Chinese, like 伊人 (yīrén) meaning "that person" or "one's beloved." Today it is not common in daily conversation, but you can find it in poetry, older texts, and as a surname.

Common words containing 伊 include: 伊拉克 (yī lā kè) — Iraq; 伊斯兰 (yī sī lán) — Islam; 伊人 (yī rén) — That person; one's beloved.