(ěr) - you (classical); thus, so; a syllable in transliterated names in Mandarin
ěrTraditional: 爾
Translation
you (classical); thus, so; a syllable in transliterated names
Word origin
A simplification of 爾, originally a pictograph of a decorated frame, borrowed very early for the second person pronoun and later worn down into a grammatical particle.
- Origin
- borrowed graph
- Root
- 爾 (ěr), borrowed for the second person pronoun
Stroke order
尔
Examples
韩。
Seoul is the capital of South Korea.
泊。
Nepal lies to the south of China.
偶。
He comes to see us now and then.
。
There is an er character in this name.
虞诈，。
They cheat one another and nobody trusts anybody.
尔 (ěr) was the ordinary word for you in classical Chinese, and it survives in modern Mandarin only in fossils. You will meet it inside 偶尔 now and then, 尔后 thereafter, and set phrases such as 尔虞我诈, mutual double dealing.
Its real job today is phonetic. Translators reach for 尔 whenever a foreign name has an r or an l sound to place, which is how we get 首尔 Seoul, 尼泊尔 Nepal, 巴西尔 Basil and hundreds more. Seeing 尔 in a word is a strong hint that the word came from abroad.
The trap is trying to use it. A learner who has met 尔 in a poem and says 尔好 sounds like a costume drama. Modern you is 你, or 您 when respect is due, and 尔 belongs to the reading side of your Chinese rather than the speaking side.
Where this fits
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尔: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "尔" (you (classical); thus, so; a syllable in transliterated names): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 55.