How to Write 应 (yīng/yìng) — Meaning “should; to respond”

Imagine a person under a wide roof (广) who is 'should-ing' or 'responding' to a call—the roof looks like a wide hat. The inner part looks like a tiny person with arms up: 丷 (two dots) on top and 一 (a line) below, then 小 (small) without the hook. Think: 'Under the wide roof, the small person says yes.'

Start with the top dot, then the left stroke (撇) and the horizontal line of 广, making the roof wide enough to cover the lower part. The bottom part has a short horizontal (一), then two dots (丷) side by side, then a small 小-like shape but without a hook — note that the last stroke is a dot, not a left-falling stroke. A common mistake is making the roof too narrow or writing the lower part too large.

平 (píng) means 'flat, level' and is totally different in meaning; visually, it has a 干 (dry) component and no roof. 庀 (pǐ) means 'to prepare' or 'to manage' and shares the 广 radical, but its lower part is 匕 (spoon/dagger), not the bird-like shape. 应 is the only one of these three that means 'should' or 'to respond'.

应 is very common in daily speech, especially in the word 应该 (yīnggāi) for 'should' or 'ought to', and 答应 (dāyìng) for 'to promise' or 'to answer'. In formal writing, 应当 (yīngdāng) is a slightly more formal synonym for 'should'. Culturally, using 应该 shows a sense of moral duty or expected behavior, which is important in Chinese social etiquette.

Common words containing 应 include: 应该 (yīng gāi) — should; ought to; 应当 (yīng dāng) — should; 答应 (dā yìng) — to promise / to agree / to answer.