How to Write 蜾 (guǒ) — Meaning “Solitary wasp”

Imagine a solitary wasp building a nest that looks like a round fruit (果). The insect radical 虫 on the left reminds you it is a bug, while the fruit shape helps you recall the sound guǒ. This picture of a wasp guarding a fruit-shaped nest makes the character easy to remember.

Write the left radical 虫 first (6 strokes), then the right part 果 (8 strokes). Keep both halves balanced in width — a common mistake is making the 虫 too wide or the 果 too narrow. Pay attention to the vertical stroke in 果 that goes through the 田 without splitting it.

蜾 uses the right component 果 (fruit), while 蛐 uses 曲 (curve) and 蛑 uses 牟 (a different phonetic). Visually, 蜾 has a 田 with a vertical line inside, 蛐 has a 田 with a curved shape, and 蛑 has a structure resembling a cow's eye. In meaning, 蜾 refers to the solitary wasp, 蛐 is a cricket, and 蛑 is a type of crab or insect.

蜾 is very rare in modern Chinese and appears mostly in classical texts or entomology books. The common word 蜾蠃 (guǒ luǒ) is found in ancient poems like the Book of Songs, describing the solitary wasp's nest-building behavior. Today, you are unlikely to see it in daily conversation, but it is a good example of a character made from insect radical and a phonetic component.

Common words containing 蜾 include: 蜾蠃 (guǒ luǒ) — Solitary wasp; 蜾蠃蜂 (guǒ luǒ fēng) — Solitary wasp; 蜾虫 (guǒ chóng) — Solitary wasp.