How to Write 滗 (bì) — Meaning “to drain; to decant; to strain”

Imagine a wet paintbrush (笔) dipped in water. You press it against the side of a cup to drain (滗) the excess water, leaving the bristles dry. The water radical 氵 reminds you it's about liquid, and the brush shows the action of squeezing out.

Pay attention to the water radical 氵: it should be written with three dots, the first two slanting left, the last a short rising stroke. The right side 笔 has a bamboo top (⺮) and a hair bottom (毛); keep the strokes balanced and do not make the top too tall or the bottom too wide.

涪 (fú) is a place name and has no meaning related to draining. 涫 (guān) means to boil or bubble, unrelated to straining. Only 滗 has the specific meaning of draining or decanting liquid, and its right side 笔 distinguishes it visually from the others' simpler right components.

滗 is used in daily life when you need to separate liquid from solid, like draining water from cooked noodles (滗汤) or pouring off herbal medicine liquid (滗药). It is common in cooking and traditional Chinese medicine, where careful straining is important for flavor or medicinal efficacy.

Common words containing 滗 include: 滗水 (bì shuǐ) — to drain water; to strain water; 滗药 (bì yào) — to strain the liquid medicine; 滗汤 (bì tāng) — to drain the soup.