丝

Tap the pinyin to hear it

silk; thread-like thing; (cuisine) shreds or julienne strips; classifier: a trace (of smoke etc), a tiny bit etc

Sound it out + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Ideographic compound (会意字)

Simplified form of 絲, two threads

Components 一 ? unknown part

silk · Heisig RSH #1079

thread

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
单丝不成线，独木不成林	dān sī bù chéng xiàn , dú mù bù chéng lín	(proverb) one strand does not make a thread, one tree does not make a forest
水丝	shuǐ sī	(silver) of low purity; low grade
生丝	shēng sī	raw silk
白丝	bái sī	white pantyhose; white stockings
花丝	huā sī	stalk (filament) of stamen
发丝	fà sī	hair (on the head)
金丝雀	jīn sī què	canary
病来如山倒，病去如抽丝	bìng lái rú shān dǎo , bìng qù rú chōu sī	sickness comes like a landslide, but goes slowly like spinning silk (idiom); expect to con…
鱼香肉丝	yú xiāng ròu sī	pork strips stir-fried with yuxiang 魚香\|鱼香[yu2 xiang1]
丝线	sī xiàn	silk thread (for sewing); silk yarn (for weaving)
丝路	Sī Lù	the Silk Road; abbr. for 絲綢之路\|丝绸之路[Si1 chou2 zhi1 Lu4]
黑丝	hēi sī	black pantyhose; black stockings
微丝血管	wēi sī xuè guǎn	capillary blood vessels
十字丝	shí zì sī	crosshairs
铁丝网	tiě sī wǎng	wire netting; CL:道[dao4]
金石丝竹	jīn shí sī zhú	(lit.) (music instruments made of) metal, stone, string, and bamboo (idiom); (fig.) tradit…
刀片铁丝网	dāo piàn tiě sī wǎng	razor wire
丝网	sī wǎng	silk screen; screen (printing)
血丝	xuè sī	wisps of blood; visible veins; (of eyes) bloodshot
一丝不挂	yī sī bù guà	not wearing one thread (idiom); absolutely naked; without a stitch of clothing; in one's b…

These characters use 丝 as their sound component — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
丝 sound part	sī	silk, fine thread; wire; strings
咝	sī	onomatopoetic, a hissing sound
鸶	sī	the eastern egret