How to Write 陔 (gāi) — Meaning “step or terrace”

Imagine a staircase (阝) leading up to a high place, and think of the sound "gāi" like saying "guy" who climbs the steps. The right side 亥 looks like a person with arms raised, celebrating reaching the top terrace.

The left radical 阝 has two strokes: a curved horizontal then a vertical line. The right side 亥 has 6 strokes: start with a dot, then a horizontal stroke, then a left-falling hook, then two left-falling strokes, and finish with a right-falling stroke. Keep the left side slightly narrower than the right side.

陔 (gāi) means step or terrace, while 邠 (bīn) is an ancient place name, and 邡 (fāng) is a place name or surname. Visually, 陔 has 亥 on the right, 邠 has 分, and 邡 has 方. They all share the 阝 radical but differ in the right component and pronunciation.

陔 is very rare in modern Chinese and not in HSK. It appears mainly in ancient texts or classical words like 九陔 (nine heavens) and 陔夏 (ancient ritual music). You might encounter it in poetry or historical writing about high places or ceremonies.

Common words containing 陔 include: 九陔 (jiǔ gāi) — Jiugai (the nine heavens; a very high place); 陔夏 (gāi xià) — Gaixia (ancient ritual music); 陔以 (gāi yǐ) — Gaiyi (ancient term).