How to Write 翼 (yì) — Meaning “wing”

Imagine a bird that is "different" (異) because it has special wings (羽) that let it fly higher than others. Picture the top part as two feathers and the bottom as a strange body with wings. This visual of a unique winged creature helps fix 翼 in your memory.

Write the top radical 羽 first: stroke order is horizontal fold, left dot, left vertical, dot, then the same for the right side (horizontal fold, dot, vertical, dot). Then write the bottom part 異, starting with the left 田 (box strokes) and finishing with the 廾 (two vertical strokes). A common mistake is making the bottom part too wide or forgetting the second dot in 羽.

翼 (wing) uses the radical 羽 and the component 異, and means a wing or flank. 翦 (meaning to cut or shear) has 羽 on top but includes 刀 (knife) underneath, so it relates to cutting. 翩 (to flutter or fly lightly) combines 羽 with 扁 (flat), and often appears in words like 翩翩 (lightly dancing). Remember: 翼 is a noun for a wing, while 翦 is a verb for cutting and 翩 describes floating motion.

You will see 翼 in technical terms like 机翼 (airplane wing) and military terms like 侧翼 (flank). It also appears in the common idiom 小心翼翼 (with great caution), which literally means "small heart and small wings," suggesting careful, delicate movement. Although not in HSK, 翼 is found in formal writing and idioms, and the phrase 如虎添翼 (like a tiger with wings) is a cultural expression for gaining extra power.

Common words containing 翼 include: 机翼 (jī yì) — wing (of an aircraft); 侧翼 (cè yì) — flank; wing; 小心翼翼 (xiǎo xīn yì yì) — With great care; very cautiously.