依 (yī): to depend on, to comply with or listen to sb, according to
依 (yī) is a Chinese character meaning “to depend on.” Classified as HSK Level 5 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 亻 (semantic) and 衣 (phonetic). It ranks #568 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 依 person. Its radical form 亻 (person) appears in many related characters such as 人 (rén, person), 什 (shén, what), 今 (jīn, now).
Definitions
- to depend on
- to comply with or listen to sb
- according to
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 依 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 依
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 依然adverb | yī rán | still | 5 |
| 依靠verb/noun | yī kào | to rely on | 5 |
| 依赖verb | yī lài | to depend on | 6 |
| 依旧verb/adverb | yī jiù | as before | 6 |
| 依据noun/verb/preposition | yī jù | according to | 5 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 依照verb | yī zhào | according to |
| 依我看phrase | yī wǒ kàn | in my opinion |
| 依法adverb | yī fǎ | legal (proceedings) |
| 皈依verb | guī yī | to convert to (a religion) |
| 依次adverb | yī cì | in order |
| 相依为命phrase | xiāng yī wéi mìng | mutually dependent for life (idiom) |
| 依偎verb | yī wēi | to nestle against |
| 依恋verb | yī liàn | to be fondly attached to |
| 无依无靠phrase | wú yī wú kào | (idiom) having nothing to rely on |
| 依附verb | yī fù | to adhere |
| 依稀adjective | yī xī | vaguely |
| 依安proper-noun | yī ān | see 依安縣|依安县 |
| 依托verb | yī tuō | to rely on |
| 百依百顺phrase | bǎi yī bǎi shùn | docile and obedient |
| 相依verb | xiāng yī | to be interdependent |
依 appears in 77 compound words: 57 as the first character, 14 as the last, and 29 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 依 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (15)
to not stop pestering (in order to achieve one's goal); unforgiving; unwilling to pardon
to be closely related and mutually dependent (like the lips and teeth)
the appearance of a woman or a child who is dependant upon others, and is also dainty and cute
(idiom) back to where we were; absolutely no improvement; things haven't changed at all
the appearance of a woman or a child who is dependant upon others, and is also dainty and cute
Showing 12 of 15 idioms containing 依.
Example Sentences
她依长得很美，心地也很善良。
tā yī cháng dé hěn měi , xīn dì yě hěn shàn liáng .
She is naturally beautiful and has a kind heart.
无糖食物等于健康食物吗?高脂无糖饼干热量依然高吗
wú táng shí wù děng yú jiàn kāng shí wù ma ? gāo zhī wú táng bǐng gān rè liàng yī rán gāo ma
Is sugar free food equal healthy food? Are high-fat sugar-free biscuits still high in calories?
《经济》达拉斯联储:德州制造业增长依然稳健
jīng jì dá lā sī lián chǔ : dé zhōu zhì zào yè zēng cháng yī rán wěn jiàn
Economy Dallas Fed: Texas manufacturing growth remains solid
巴菲特执掌的最后一季 波克夏上季依然卖超美股
bā 菲 tè zhí zhǎng de zuì hòu yī jì bō kè xià shàng jì yī rán mài chāo měi gǔ
Buffett's last season at the helm Berkshire still sold more than U.S. stocks last season
...有iPhone了?专家指苹果算力、制造太依赖两岸:决策近乎失职
. . . yǒu i P h o n e le ? zhuān jiā zhǐ píng guǒ suàn lì , zhì zào tài yī lài liǎng àn : jué cè jìn hū shī zhí
... Got an iPhone? Experts point out that Apple's computing power and manufacturing are too dependent on both sides of the strait: decision-making is almost derelict
曹观友:MRT接管后修订路线 槟轻快铁依法展开修订谘询
cáo guàn yǒu : M R T jiē guǎn hòu xiū dìng lù xiàn 槟 qīng kuài tiě yī fǎ zhǎn kāi xiū dìng 谘 xún
Cao Guanyou: After the MRT takes over, the route will be revised The Penang Light Rail will launch a consultation on revision in accordance with the law
汤姆还在依赖他父母吗?
Tāngmǔ hái zài yīlài tā fùmǔ ma?
Does Tom still rely on his parents?
那个杀人犯依然逍遥法外。
Nàge shārénfàn yīrán xiāoyáofǎwài.
The murderer is still at large.
汤姆对咖啡因有依赖，是吗？
Tāngmǔ duì kāfēiyīn yǒu yīlài, shì ma?
Tom has a caffeine dependency, doesn't he?
小心，精神依赖不是爱的同义词！
Xiǎoxīn, jīngshén yīlài bù shì ài de tóngyìcí!
Careful! Emotional dependency is not synonymous with love!
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 亻 (person) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 依 (yī) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 依 and 袭?
How many strokes does 依 have?
What is the radical of 依?
What are the components of 依?
What are common words containing 依?
What characters sound the same as 依 (yī)?
Is 依 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 依 with real-time feedback
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