Definitions

(adjective) easy; simple
(verb) to change
(verb) to exchange

Etymology

Upside-down version of , depicting food or drink being poured from a container (). Based on the original meaning "to bestow, give", now written as . The meaning later shifted to "exchange", "change", and "easy".

About

The character 易 combines the sun radical 日 above the component 勿, a structure that has inspired different etymological theories about its original depiction. Some scholars propose it illustrates the sun appearing through clouds, suggesting a change in weather, while others believe it may have represented a chameleon, known for its color-changing abilities. Despite debates over its visual origin, its core meaning has always revolved around change, transformation, and exchange, evident in classical texts like the I Ching, or Book of Changes. This foundational idea of altering circumstances or swapping items naturally extended to the secondary sense of something being easy or simple to accomplish.

Etymology Hide

Oracle etymology image
Oracle (~1250-1000 BC)
Oracle etymology image
Oracle (~1250-1000 BC)
Oracle etymology image
Oracle (~1250-1000 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Late Shang dynasty (~1100 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Early Western Zhou (~1000 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Late Warring States (~250 BC)
Bronze etymology image
Bronze Late Warring States (~250 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

这件事很容

Zhè jiàn shì hěn róng yì.

This matter is very easy.

我们进行了一笔交

Wǒmen jìnxíngle yī bǐ jiāo yì.

We conducted a transaction.

编程学但难精通。

Biānchéng yì xué dàn nán jīngtōng.

Programming is easy to learn but hard to master.

气候变影响农业。

Qìhòu yì biàn yǐngxiǎng nóngyè.

Climate changeability affects agriculture.

他们住在简的房子里。

Tāmen zhù zài jiǎn yì de fángzi lǐ.

They live in a simple house.

这幅画已经手三次。

Zhè fú huà yǐjīng yì shǒu sān cì.

This painting has changed hands three times.

新手机的设计非常用。

Xīn shǒujī de shèjì fēicháng yì yòng.

The design of the new phone is very user-friendly.

老年人感疾病需要定期检查。

Lǎonián rén yì gǎn jíbìng, xūyào dìngqī jiǎnchá.

Elderly people are susceptible to diseases and need regular check-ups.