How to Write 萑 (huán) — Meaning “a type of reed”

Imagine a bird (隹) hiding in tall grass (艹) to escape danger. The reeds (萑) provide perfect cover — just picture the bird peeking out from a cluster of reeds.

Keep the grass radical 艹 wide enough to cover the 隹 below. The top horizontal stroke of 隹 should align with the middle of 艹, and the bottom part of 隹 must not extend too far left or right.

兹 (zī) means "this" or "now" and has 丷 (two dots) on top of 丝 (silk), not grass plus a bird. 苧 (zhù) is a plant called ramie, with 艹 plus 宁 (níng); it looks similar but has a different bottom part.

萑 is rarely used alone today; it appears mainly in classical compound words like 萑苻 (reeds, also a term for a bandit's hideout). You might encounter it in historical texts or place names, but not in everyday conversation.

Common words containing 萑 include: 萑苻 (huán fú) — reeds; a hideout for bandits; 萑苇 (huán wěi) — reeds; 萑兰 (huán lán) — reeds and orchids.