Writing Balance Rule: The left side (戌) is slightly narrower and taller, while the right side (女) is broader and anchors the character with a sweeping horizontal stroke.
Sounds like: w sound like the English 'w' in 'water'
Unaspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: Round lips tightly before gliding into vowel.
Tongue & Mouth Position: Lips are rounded and protruded slightly, then glide quickly into the following vowel.
Final Rhyme
ei
Vowel Group: -e vowel group
Sounds like: -ei rhymes with 'ay' in 'day'
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ay'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T1 (55)
5 → 5 (55)
1st Tone (High-Flat)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 1 is a high level pitch (55), comparable to maintaining a high flat musical tone.
👂
Listening trap: Confusing the high level tone (Tone 1, wēi) with the rising tone (Tone 2, wéi). Ensure the pitch stays completely flat and high rather than climbing upward.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 1 is a high level pitch, much like holding a steady, high musical note without any rise or fall. Imagine a singer hitting a high note and holding it flat.
3. Writing
Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 9 strokes
Writing Balance Rule: The left side (戌) is slightly narrower and taller, while the right side (女) is broader and anchors the character with a sweeping horizontal stroke.
4. Components
Radical女 · Female Radical (woman, female)
Semantic Clue (形旁):女 (denotes a connection to posture or person)
Phonetic Clue (声旁):戌 (original sound: xū)
The character combines the weapon/halberd radical component (戌) on the left with 'woman' (女) on the right, historically representing a weapon of authority held by a powerful figure.
戌 phonetic and weapon component
女 semantic woman/person component
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
3· Phonetic Root: 威 (wēi)
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)
Origin: Originally depicted a weapon (like a halberd or axe) associated with military command and authority, later generalized to mean prestige and might.
Semantic Evolution: From a physical weapon of command to abstract power, awe-inspiring influence, and prestige.
Often used in historical contexts relating to military might and imperial dignity.
6. Sinosphere
🇻🇳
Sino-Vietnamese
uy
Mandarin Tone 1 corresponds to ngang tone in Sino-Vietnamese.
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: イ / Kun: おそ.れる
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
위
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story
A **woman** (女) holding a sharp military weapon/halberd (**戌**) commands absolute **power** and prestige that makes everyone obey.
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
威
wēipowerbase character
郾
yǎnplace nameuses eastern city mound radical
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
感(gǎn)
感 has a heart (心) at the bottom meaning feeling, whereas 威 has a woman (女) on the right.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
这家公司在行业里很有[___]。
Clue: wēi fēng
Common Learner Pitfall
Confusing the right-hand component with unrelated radicals or forgetting the stroke order of the left halberd component (戌).
Memory Prompts
Recognition: What does the character 威 mean when you see it in compounds like 威胁 or 威风?
Production: How do you write the character for 'power/might' (wēi) using the 'woman' (女) component?
Real-World Video Context
Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.
Search theme
Accent preference
Results are live YouTube search — accents and levels aren't verified.
威wēipower
Speed:
Searching YouTube for native pronunciation videos...