How to Write 榧 (fěi) — Meaning “Torreya”

Imagine a rare tree (木) that grows ‘匪’ (which sounds like ‘fay’) — picture a magical fairy guarding a grove of Torreya trees in an ancient forest. The unusual right side 匪 can remind you that this nut is special and not as common as other nuts. Associate the sound fěi with "fairy" to connect the tree to a memorable image.

The left radical 木 must have its last stroke as a dot (丶) instead of a right-falling stroke (捺), and the vertical stroke should be straight. The right side 匪 contains many horizontal strokes — be careful to keep them parallel and evenly spaced. A common mistake is making the right side too wide; keep the whole character balanced, with the left side slightly narrower than the right.

榧 refers specifically to the Torreya tree or its nut, while 棉 (mián) means cotton (a plant fiber) and 棋 (qí) means chess or board games. Visually, 榧 has the right component 匪 (with a rectangular enclosure and an inner 非), whereas 棉 uses 帛 (silk) on the right and 棋 uses 其. All three share the 木 radical, so focus on the right side to tell them apart.

Common words containing 榧 include: 香榧 (xiāng fěi) — Torreya grandis (a type of nut); 榧子 (fěi zi) — Torreya nut; 榧木 (fěi mù) — Torreya wood.