How to Write 埲 (běng) — Meaning “dust / cloud of dust”

Imagine a pile of soil (土) that you offer up (奉) into the air, creating a cloud of dust. This visual can help you recall both the shape and meaning of 埲.

Start with the left radical 土 written smaller, then write the right part 奉 with three horizontal strokes followed by a vertical stroke and two more horizontals. A common mistake is making the 奉 too wide or mixing up the stroke order of 奉 (top to bottom, left to right within each section).

埲 specifically means "dust" or "cloud of dust," while 型 (xíng) means "model" or "mold" and contains 刑 (punishment) not 奉. 垌 (dòng) refers to a "cave" or "field" and uses 同 (same) instead. Visually, 埲 has 奉 on the right, 型 has 刑, and 垌 has 同.

埲 is very rare in modern Chinese and does not appear in the HSK vocabulary lists. It is mostly found in classical literature or regional dialects to describe loose soil or rising dust, so you will likely only encounter it in specialized or historical texts.

Common words containing 埲 include: 埲土 (běng tǔ) — loose soil / dust; 尘埲 (chén běng) — Rising dust; 埲子 (běng zi) — dust / loose dirt.