How to Write 稠 (chóu) — Meaning “thick; dense”

Imagine a field of grain (禾) so thick and dense that you have to walk all the way around (周) it to get through. This visual of abundant grain surrounding you helps link 'dense' to the character. Another trick: think of "chóu" sounding like "chewy" — thick porridge is chewy.

The left radical 禾 should be narrow and slightly shorter, with the dot on top well-placed. The right part 周 has a wide frame (冂) and a 土 inside; make sure the vertical strokes of the frame go straight down. A common mistake is making the left side too wide or forgetting the small horizontal stroke inside the right frame.

稠 has the right component 周 (a frame with 土 inside), meaning 'thick' or 'dense'. 秸 (jiē) has 吉 on the right and means 'straw' or 'stalk'. 移 (yí) has 多 on the right and means 'to move'. Visually, 稠's right side is like a building with a floor, while 秸's right side is a 'good luck' sign and 移's is a pair of 'evening' characters.

稠 appears in words like 稠密 (dense population) and 浓稠 (thick liquid, e.g., soup). It is not in the HSK list, so it is for advanced learners. In Chinese cooking, describing a sauce as 浓稠 is common, and the phrase 稠人广众 refers to a dense crowd of people.

Common words containing 稠 include: 稠密 (chóu mì) — dense; thick; 浓稠 (nóng chóu) — thick and viscous; 稀稠 (xī chóu) — consistency (of liquids); thickness.