How to write 已 (yǐ, “already”)
已 (yǐ), an HSK 2 character, means “already”, “to stop” and “thereafter”. Its 3 strokes put it among the simplest at HSK 2. On its own it is an HSK 4 word; it also forms 已经 (“already”), 早已 (“for a long time”) and 不已 (“endlessly”). Japanese reads it i, “stop”.
- Pinyin
- yǐ
- Strokes
- 3
- HSK
- 2
- Radical
- 己 (“oneself”)
Stroke by stroke
- 1
- 2
- 3
- Horizontal-turn ㇕top leftrightwards → downwards
- Horizontal ㇐leftrightwards
- Vertical-curve-hook ㇟top leftdown and right → rightwards → upwards
Japanese and Chinese
Japanese and Chinese draw all 3 strokes in the same order and direction, by our stroke-by-stroke comparison.
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Pinyin and meaning
| Pinyin | Meanings | Traditional | In words |
|---|---|---|---|
| yǐ third tone | already; (bound form) to stop; to cease; to end; (literary) thereafter; afterward; (literary) too; excessively | — | 已经 早已 不已 不得已 |
- HSK 2025 syllabus
- level 2
- 2021 standard
- level 2
- HSK 2.0
- in a level 2 word
- Words with it
- 45 in CC-CEDICT
Words with 已
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 已 | yǐ | already; to stop HSK 4 |
| 已经 已經 | yǐjīng | already HSK 2 |
| 早已 | zǎoyǐ | for a long time; long since HSK 5 |
| 不已 | bùyǐ | (used after a verb) endlessly; incessantly HSK 6 |
| 不得已 | bùdéyǐ | to act against one's will; to have no alternative but to HSK 7-9 |
| 而已 | éryǐ | that's all; nothing more HSK 7-9 |
| 已知 | yǐzhī | known (to science) |
| 年事已高 | niánshìyǐgāo | old in years |
| 已往 | yǐwǎng | the past |
| 已然 | yǐrán | already; to be already so |
HSK words first (CC-CEDICT).
Practice sheet
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HSK 2, in list order: