恶意
è yì · HSK 7
evil intention
😈 è yì sounds like AY YI! — the gasp when you spot malice
恶 (è) means evil or wicked, 意 (yì) means intention or meaning. Together they form evil intention — malice. The exclamation AY YI echoes the shock of encountering someone's hostile intent.
恶 — 亚 (yà) phonetic + 心 (heart) below
A semantic-phonetic compound: the heart radical 心 carries the meaning, while 亚 supplies the sound. Originally written 惡, it depicted a 'heart' beneath 亞, suggesting feelings of dislike or hatred. Over time it extended from 'to hate' (wù) to 'evil, bad' (è).