How to Write 溢 (yì) — Meaning “to overflow; to spill over”

Imagine a cup of water (氵) that is filled to the very top, and then one extra drop (益) makes it spill over. The character 益 looks like a container with extra liquid rising above its rim. This visual of "water plus extra" helps you recall that 溢 means overflow.

The left radical 氵 is written in three dots, with the second dot slightly lower to form a curve. The right part 益 has a 丷 (eight-like top) over a 皿 (dish), and you must not mix up the strokes inside — the horizontal line under 丷 should be shorter than the bottom 皿. A common mistake is making the right side too wide; keep it balanced and compact.

溢 (yì) means overflow, while 涪 (fú) is a place name (like 涪陵) and rarely used in daily vocabulary. 涫 (guān) is a very rare character meaning 'to boil' or 'to bubble.' Visually, 溢 has 益 on the right, 涪 has 咅 (pǒu, a phonetic component), and 涫 has 官 (guān). Focus on the right-side component to distinguish them.

溢 is commonly used in words like 溢出 (yì chū) for liquid spilling over, and 洋溢 (yáng yì) to describe a place or atmosphere 'brimming with' joy or energy. It can also appear in formal writing, such as 充溢 (chōng yì) meaning 'full of.' A cultural note: 溢 is often used poetically to express abundance, like in '热情洋溢' (rè qíng yáng yì, brimming with enthusiasm).

Common words containing 溢 include: 溢出 (yì chū) — to overflow; to spill out; 洋溢 (yáng yì) — To brim with; to be permeated with.; 充溢 (chōng yì) — to overflow; to be full of.