益 (yì) is a Chinese character meaning “benefit”. It is written from 䒑 (two short strokes above a horizontal line) and 八 (eight) and 皿 (dish; vessel), and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “benefit”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
䒑 + 八 + 皿
Top–middle–bottom structure
- 䒑 two short strokes above a horizontal line meaning
- 八 eight · bā meaning
- 皿 dish; vessel · mǐn meaning
Structure from: 说文解字: 益，饒也。从水皿（上部为横置的水，现代字形据 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验为 䒑+八）
Memory aid
A dish (皿) heaped so full that the pile (八) pushes up the lid (䒑) — more than enough means benefit.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 利益lì yìbenefit; interest (e.g. of a person or group)益 = yì
- 有益yǒu yìbeneficial; useful益 = yì
- 益处yì chùbenefit; advantage益 = yì
Go deeper
All readings
benefit
benefit; profit; advantage; beneficial; increasingly
好处；有好处的；增加；更加。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 利益lì yìbenefit; interest (e.g. of a person or group)益 = yì
- 有益yǒu yìbeneficial; useful益 = yì
- 益处yì chùbenefit; advantage益 = yì
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 益 mean?
益 (yì) means benefit; profit; advantage; beneficial; increasingly.
How do you pronounce 益?
It is pronounced yì.
What parts is 益 made of?
䒑 (two short strokes above a horizontal line) and 八 (eight) and 皿 (dish; vessel). The recorded source is: 说文解字: 益，饒也。从水皿（上部为横置的水，现代字形据 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验为 䒑+八）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 益 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 益?
皿. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 益?
Common ones are 利益, 有益, 益处. The reading of 益 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.