How to Write 埵 (duǒ) — Meaning “mound / heap of earth”

Imagine a small mound of earth (土) shaped like a ball of dough — the sound duǒ sounds like 'dough.' Picture the right side as two layers of earth stacked on top of each other, forming a little hill.

Write the left radical 土 narrow and tall, with the bottom horizontal stroke slightly shorter than the top one. The right part has a top horizontal, a vertical stroke, and a bottom horizontal — make sure the right side is wider than the left and the bottom strokes align at the same level.

埵 means a mound or heap of earth, while 型 means a mold or type, and 垌 refers to a field path or open land. Visually, 型 includes a knife radical (刂) on the left, 垌 has 同 (tóng) on the right, but 埵 has a unique right component that looks like stacked earth.

埵 is rare and not in the HSK, appearing mainly in classical literature or technical descriptions of terrain, such as in geography or archaeology. You might find it in words like 堆埵 (mound) or 泥埵 (mud mound), but it is not used in everyday conversation.

Common words containing 埵 include: 堆埵 (duī duǒ) — mound; small hill; 泥埵 (ní duǒ) — Mud mound; 埵积 (duǒ jī) — to pile up / accumulation.