Dictionary › 欸

欸

āi

Character

What 欸 means

1. (indicating response)
2. (sadly sighing)
3. also pr. èi

Other readings

欸 is 多音字 — it is read more than one way, and the reading changes the meaning.

• ǎito rebuke loudly; to sigh; used in {欸乃|ǎi nǎi}
• ēihey (used to draw attention)
• éieh; huh (used to express surprise)
• ěihmm (used to express disapproval)
• èiyes (used to express agreement)

Words starting with 欸

• 欸乃ǎi nǎi(onomatopoeia; literary) the creaking of a stern-mounted oar

Characters built on 矣

These share the phonetic component 矣 (yǐ), which is why their readings rhyme. Learning them as a family is far cheaper than learning them one at a time.

• 埃āidust; dirt; angstrom
• 唉āiinterjection or grunt of agreement or recognition (e.g. yes, it's me!); to sigh
• 挨āiin order; in sequence; close to; adjacent to

Characters that look like 欸

Easy to confuse on sight. Compare them side by side once and the pair stops costing you.

• 就jiù(after a suppositional clause) in that case; then; (after a clause of action) as soon as…
• 教jiāoto teach; to instruct
• 效xiàoto imitate (variant of 效
• 敖Áosurname Ao
• 跛bǒto limp; lame; crippled
• 敝bìmy (polite); poor; ruined

Sounds the same

Read āi, tone for tone, but written differently.

• 哎hey!; (interjection used to attract attention or to express surprise or disapprobation)
• 唉interjection or grunt of agreement or recognition (e.g. yes, it's me!); to sigh
• 哀(bound form) sorrow; grief; pity; (bound form) to grieve for; to pity; to lament…
• 挨in order; in sequence; close to; adjacent to
• 埃dust; dirt; angstrom
• 銰character used in Korea in former times to represent the syllable "ngai"
• 锿einsteinium (chemistry)
• 娭see 娭姐; granny (dialect); respectful form of address for older lady