Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.
椅yǐchair
木tree · mùMeaning part
奇strange · jīSound part
木 hints at the meaning (tree); 奇 (jī) hints at the sound. Compare it with yǐ.
子zinoun suffix, as in 椅子 “chair”
了clear · le
一one · yī
Memory aidA baby with its arms out and its legs wrapped up.
How to write 椅子
椅 12 strokes · 子 3 strokes
Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.
Stroke order chart for 椅子 (yǐzi). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.
椅子 (yǐzi) means “chair”. It is an HSK 1 word, so it is one of the words learners meet early.
Say it yǐzi: yǐ with a 3rd tone, then zi with a neutral tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
Yes. 椅子 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.
Use 把 (bǎ) or 张 (zhāng). For example, one chair is 一把椅子 (yì bǎ yǐzi).
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type yizi with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 椅子 from the suggestions. Typing yizi into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
椅子 is an HSK 1 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.
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Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.