Chinese interjection 誒

It is a Chinese exclamation shaped by tone and context.

It can call for attention, show surprise or disapproval, or acknowledge someone. In modern writing, 誒 and 欸 are traditional spellings of this particle; 诶 is its simplified form.

The Eastern Han-era Shuowen Jiezi, an early Chinese dictionary, glosses 誒 as an exclamation of disgust or regret.

Why does 誒 have so many readings?

It records speech used for different reactions.

The Shuowen Jiezi also gives the reading 誒然. Later commentary connects 誒 with 欸 and 唉, whose sounds or uses can overlap; that history does not make them interchangeable in every message.

Modern references distinguish calling, answering, surprise, disapproval, and agreement by tone, alongside the older regretful sense. The NCCU Taiwan Mandarin corpus, a collection of conversational Taiwanese Mandarin, records the modern particle written as 欸 and 诶.

What does 誒 mean when someone sends it?

It is a reaction cue, not a reliable yes-or-no answer.

At the start of a message it can call attention or mark surprise. As a reply it can acknowledge someone; before a correction it can signal disagreement. The sentence and punctuation help settle which reading fits.

Alone, 誒 leaves the speaker's exact reaction open. Check what it replies to before taking it as agreement.