艺 (yì) — art; skill; craftsmanship

Definition

艺 is a bound morpheme meaning 'art, skill, craft' — it never stands alone and almost always pairs with 术, 工, or 技 (as in 艺术, 工艺, 技艺).

bound form
artskillcraftsmanship

Examples

  • 。
    Tā duì yì shù hěn gǎn xìng qù.
    He is very interested in art.
  • 。
    Zhè jiā gōng chǎng de gōng yì fēi cháng xiān jìn.
    This factory's craftsmanship is very advanced.
  • 。
    Tā de jì yì shuǐ píng hěn gāo.
    His skill level is very high.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
艹Written in full as艸cǎo
Sound part声符shēngfú
乙
乙yǐ艺yì
Same sound today

In 艺, the top 艹 points to plants, and the lower 乙 gives the sound.

Appears in

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