HanziGuru.愉 · yú
愉
yú[yu2]Tone 2

pleased

HSK 6
Guru Deep Dive

English · pleased

Cached lesson
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Topology:Left-right
Strokes:12
Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (heart-side 忄) must be narrower and taller, leaving ample room for the right-side component (俞) so the character remains balanced and does not lean.
1. Meaning

pleased, happy, joyful

delightedgratified
AdjectiveFormal / LiteraryBound morpheme#emotion#mind#personality
Sample Usage
  • 愉快
    yúkuài
    happy, pleasant
  • 心情愉悦
    xīnqíng yúyuè
    to be in a joyful state of mind
2. Sound
/[y³⁵]/Tone: 35
愉
yúyu2
++
´(35)
=yú
Initial Consonant
y
Type: Palatal Glide (Zero Initial)
Sounds like: Zero initial (starts directly with the vowel/glide y)
Unaspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: Acts as a bridge into 'i' or 'ü' vowel sounds.
Tongue & Mouth Position: Lips rounded initially for the 'u' semivowel glide, shifting smoothly.
Final Rhyme
u
Vowel Group: -v vowel group
Sounds like: French 'u' or German 'ü' sound
Note: Written as 'u', pronounced as rounded 'ü' [y].
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ü'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T2 (35)
2nd Tone (Mid-Rising)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 2 rises like a questioning English sentence (e.g., 'Huh?').
👂
Listening trap: Do not confuse with Tone 4 (yù) or Tone 1 (yū); the rising Tone 2 starts mid-low and climbs clearly to the top.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: Imagine nodding up while asking 'You?' in an incredulous, rising tone of voice.
3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 12 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (heart-side 忄) must be narrower and taller, leaving ample room for the right-side component (俞) so the character remains balanced and does not lean.

4. Components

Radical 忄 · Vertical Heart Radical (Heart, emotions, psychological state)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 忄 (Indicates that the word relates to emotions or feelings (specifically joy/pleasure).)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 俞 (original sound: yú)

The vertical heart radical (忄) on the left represents feelings, combined with the phonetic component 俞 (yú) on the right which gives the sound and hints at a feeling of flowing smoothly through joy.

  • 忄 Heart / emotion
  • 俞 Phonetic clue for 'yú'
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Combined from the heart radical (忄) for emotion and 俞 (yú) which originally depicted a hollow vessel or boat agreeing or going along with the water flow, transferring the sense of smooth agreement to inner satisfaction.

Semantic Evolution: Originally conveyed assent or agreement, later specializing into a feeling of mental ease, satisfaction, and happiness.

  • The component 俞 frequently lends its sound to characters in the yú family.
6. Sinosphere
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: ユ / Kun: たの.しむ
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
유
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story

Your **HEART** (忄) feels completely **PLEASED** (yú) when you are sailing smoothly down a river in a small boat (俞).

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
愉
yúpleasedHeart radical + 俞 = pleased
输
shūto transport / loseVehicle radical + 俞 = transport or lose
逾
yúto exceed / surpassWalking radical + 俞 = walk past / exceed
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
输(shū)
输 uses the vehicle radical (车), whereas 愉 uses the heart radical (忄) because being pleased is an emotion.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
祝大家度过一个[___]的周末！
Clue: yú kuài
Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the phonetic right side (俞) with similar components or misremembering the tone as Tone 4 (yù) instead of Tone 2 (yú).

Memory Prompts
Recognition: What emotion does the heart radical (忄) combined with 俞 (yú) represent?
Production: How do you write and pronounce the adjective meaning 'pleased/happy' (yú)?
Real-World Video Context

Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.

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