How to Write 蚝 (háo) — Meaning “oyster”

Picture an oyster (虫) covered in tiny hairs (毛) — imagine a fuzzy oyster clinging to a rock. The right side 毛 looks like bristles, reminding you that an oyster's shell feels rough and textured. This unusual image helps link the sound 'háo' to the creature.

Write the left radical 虫 narrow and tall, with the final dot aligned with the middle of the right side. The right part 毛 has four strokes: start with a short left-falling stroke, then three horizontal strokes; the last horizontal should extend slightly to the right. A common mistake is making the right side too wide, so keep it balanced.

蚝 (háo) means oyster and uses 毛 on the right, while 虮 (jǐ) means the egg of a louse and has 几 on the right. 虰 (dīng) refers to a type of dragonfly and uses 丁 on the right. All share the 虫 radical, but the right side changes the meaning and pronunciation completely.

蚝 appears most often in food terms like 蚝油 (oyster sauce) and 生蚝 (raw oyster). Oyster sauce is a common condiment in Cantonese cooking, used to flavor stir-fries and vegetables. You will also see 蚝 in restaurant menus, especially for seafood dishes, and it is very popular in coastal southern China.

Common words containing 蚝 include: 蚝油 (háo yóu) — oyster sauce; 生蚝 (shēng háo) — Oyster; 蚝油生菜 (háo yóu shēng cài) — lettuce with oyster sauce.