How to Write 魃 (bá) — Meaning “Drought demon”

Imagine a ghost (鬼) who is so hot and dry that it has a sunburn — the right side 犮 looks like a person (犮 resembles 友, friend) but with extra strokes representing heat waves. Visualize this demon friend causing a drought wherever it goes.

Start with the left radical 鬼: write 丿, 丨, 乚, then 一, 一, 丿, 乚, 丶 (8 strokes). Then on the right, 犮: first 一, 丿, 丶, then 丶 (5 strokes). Common mistake is confusing the right side with 友 (you) — note that 犮 has an extra dot above the right part.

魁 (kuí, chief) has the radical 鬼 with 斗 on the right, meaning 'leader' or 'big'. 魂 (hún, soul) has 鬼 with 云 (cloud) on the right, referring to the spiritual soul. 魃 uniquely has 犮 and specifically means a drought demon, not a chief or soul.

魃 is rare in modern Chinese and mostly appears in classical literature or mythology about ancient drought spirits, like 旱魃 (hàn bá). It can also be found in fantasy games or stories as a name for a monster. Outside of specialized contexts, you are unlikely to encounter it in daily conversation.

Common words containing 魃 include: 旱魃 (hàn bá) — drought demon; 魃舞 (bá wǔ) — Dance of the drought demon; 魃魅 (bá mèi) — Drought demon and spirits.