How to Write 肪 (fáng) — Meaning “fat (usually in 'fatty tissue')”

Picture a square (方) piece of meat (月) that is pure fat. Since 方 can mean 'square' and 月 means 'flesh', you can remember that fatty tissue often appears in square chunks in diagrams or butcher shops.

When writing 肪, make sure the left radical 月 is narrow and tall, not wide. The right part 方 must be written with 4 strokes in correct order: dot, horizontal, hook, and then a sweeping stroke (撇). A common mistake is making 月 too wide or forgetting the hook on 方.

Unlike 有 (yǒu, 'to have'), which also has the 月 radical but a different right part (又), 肪 specifically means 'fat'. Compared to 朊 (ruǎn, 'protein' or 'soft'), 肪 always involves fat tissue. Visually, 有 has a wider right side and 朊 uses 元 instead of 方.

Modern Chinese uses 肪 almost exclusively in compound words related to fat, such as 脂肪 (zhī fáng, fat, adipose tissue) and 脂肪肝 (zhī fáng gān, fatty liver). It appears in medical, nutritional, or health contexts, especially on food labels like 脱脂 (tuō zhī, skimmed or fat-free).

Common words containing 肪 include: 脂肪 (zhī fáng) — fat; adipose tissue; 脱脂 (tuō zhī) — degreased; skimmed (milk); 脂肪肝 (zhī fáng gān) — fatty liver.