碍

礙
ài
verb #7,161

Meanings

  1. 1 to hinder
  2. 2 to obstruct

Examples

HSK 1
Qǐng búyào ài shì.
Don't block the way.
HSK 4
Tā de líkāi bú huì ài wǒmen de jìhuà.
His leaving won't affect our plans.
HSK 7-9
Nàkē dàshù ài le shìxiàn.
The big tree blocks the view.

Tips

usage
碍 rarely stands alone; it usually appears in compounds: 障碍 (obstacle), 妨碍 (to hinder), 碍事 (to be in the way), 碍眼 (to be an eyesore).

Components

radical
石 shí
stone
Indexing stone radical on the left - a stone blocking the path is the canonical image of obstruction. Anchors 碍 in the stone family alongside 砌 (build with stones), 碎 (crush), 砖 (brick). Without it the right side wouldn't carry the obstruction sense.
phonetic
㝵 ài
to obtain (archaic, here phonetic)
Right side 㝵 supplies the sound exactly: ài. Originally a hand reaching out for an object - the same root that became 得 (get). Pictures someone grasping in front of them; pair it with the stone radical and you get a stone blocking the reach = obstacle.

Stroke Order

碍 ài