How to Write 肚 (dǔ/dù) — Meaning “Belly; stomach.”

Imagine your belly (肚) is like a bag of dirt: the left part 月 is the flesh of your stomach, and the right part 土 (soil) is what you might feel is inside after a big meal. This visual of a "flesh bag with soil" helps link the parts to the meaning.

When writing 肚, make sure the left radical 月 is narrow and tall, with its first two strokes as a short left-falling and a vertical line. The right part 土 should be slightly shorter and centered; a common mistake is making the 土 too large or misaligning its horizontal stroke with the middle of 月.

肚 has 月 on the left and 土 on the right, meaning belly. In contrast, 有 has 月 on top and 又 below, meaning "to have" or "exist," and 朊 has 月 on the left with 元 on the right, used in rare words like "soft" or as a chemical term. The different right-side components are key to distinguishing them.

Chinese speakers use 肚 most often in the word 肚子 (dǔ zi) to refer to the belly or stomach, such as in 肚子饿 (dù zi è, hungry). It also appears in food terms like 牛肚 (niú dǔ, beef tripe), a common dish in Chinese cuisine. Culturally, the belly is associated with health and digestion, and phrases like "肚子痛" (stomachache) are very common.

Common words containing 肚 include: 肚子 (dǔ zi) — Belly; stomach; tummy.; 腹肚 (fù dù) — belly; abdomen; 牛肚 (niú dǔ) — Beef tripe.