You Collection, Upper Volume Radical: Speech (yán) Kangxi Strokes: 12 Page 1154, Entry 13 Pronounced ye (falling tone). According to the Shuo Wen Jiezi (Explicating Graphs and Analyzing Characters), it means to speak excessively. It cites the Book of Odes (Shijing): Do not be so talkative. In the present Great Odes (Daya) section, the character is written as a different graph. Xunzi (Xunzi), in the chapter Dispelling Blindness (Jiebi), states: To have a sharp tongue and a knack for speech is called ye. The commentary notes: It means to speak excessively. Also pronounced shi (falling tone). It refers to speaking too much. Also pronounced xue (entering tone). The meaning is the same. According to the Jiyun (Collected Rhymes), it is the same as the character pronounced yi. According to the Six Scripts Corrected (Liushu Zheng’e), the common form is a mistake. According to the Supplement to the Compendium of Characters (Zihui Bu), the abbreviated form is an error and is especially incorrect. Textual Research: In the Xunzi chapter Dispelling Blindness, the original text reads: To have a sharp tongue and a knack for speech is called ye. The text has been corrected to reflect this.