yí

yí is a Mandarin syllable in the second tone, written in pinyin as yí. It represents many different Chinese characters, so it is not a single word but a pronunciation shared by several morphemes. In modern Mandarin, words containing this reading gain meaning from the specific character that carries the yí sound.

Common characters with the pronunciation yí include: 疑, meaning doubt; in words such as 疑问 (yíwèn) and 疑似 (yísì). 移, meaning to move, as in 移动 (yídòng) and 移民 (yímín). 遗, meaning to leave behind or to be lost, as in 遗憾 (yíhàn), 遗留 (yíliú), 遗失 (yíshī). 颐, meaning to nourish or support, as in 颐养 (yíyǎng). 仪, meaning ceremony or appearance, as in 仪式 (yíshì), 仪表 (yíbiǎo). 彝, the Yi ethnic group, written 彝族 (Yízú). 夷, meaning barbarian or to flatten, as in 夷平 (yípíng). 贻, meaning to transmit or to bequeath, as in 贻害 (yíhài) and 贻误 (yíwù).

Because yí covers many characters with distinct meanings, context and characters determine the meaning in any given word or name. It also appears in personal or ethnographic terms, such as the Yi people (彝族), and in literary or historical phrases where the same pronunciation is shared by different characters.