憶 meaning and stroke order
To remember, to reflect upon; memory
How to write 憶, stroke by stroke
16 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 憶
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to recollect
- to remember
- memory
How 憶 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Heart.
忄 gives the meaning and 意 hints at the sound.
Radical: 忄 (heart), shared by 167 characters on this site.
How to remember 憶
憶 combines the heart radical 忄 with 意 (yì), which gives the sound. Picture your heart holding on to an idea 意 from the past: that is a memory.
憶 is the traditional form and rarely appears alone. It mostly lives in words like 記憶 (jìyì, memory) and 回憶 (huíyì, to recall; memories). Example: 我常常回憶小時候的事。(Wǒ chángcháng huíyì xiǎoshíhou de shì.) I often think back on my childhood.
Common mistake: Learners often drop the heart radical and write 意 (yì, meaning; idea), which sounds the same but means something different. Also do not confuse it with 億 (yì, hundred million), which has the person radical 亻 instead of 忄.
Common words with 憶
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 記憶 | jìyì | to remember; to recall; memory | HSK 5 |
| 回憶 | huíyì | to recall; memories | HSK 5 |
| 回憶錄 | huíyìlù | memoir | HSK 7-9 |
| 記憶猶新 | jìyì-yóuxīn | to remain fresh in one's memory (idiom) | HSK 7-9 |
| 失憶 | shīyì | to lose one's memory | |
| 記憶力 | jìyìlì | faculty of memory; ability to remember | |
| 失憶症 | shīyìzhèng | amnesia | |
| 追憶 | zhuīyì | to recollect; to recall (past times) |
Questions about 憶
How many strokes are in 憶?
憶 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 憶 mean?
憶 (yì) means to remember, to reflect upon; memory. A common word with it is 记忆 (jìyì), meaning "to remember; to recall; memory".
How do you pronounce 憶?
憶 is pronounced yì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 憶?
The radical of 憶 is 忄, which carries the idea of "heart". Dictionaries list 憶 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 憶?
憶 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 忆, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the difference between 記憶 and 回憶?
記憶 (jìyì) is memory as an ability or the stored content, as in 記憶力 (jìyìlì, memory power). 回憶 (huíyì) is the act of looking back on past experiences, or the memories themselves, often with feeling.
How do I say I lost my memory using 憶?
Use 失憶 (shīyì), as in 他失憶了 (tā shīyì le), he lost his memory. The medical term for amnesia is 失憶症 (shīyìzhèng).