How to Write 荤 (hūn) — Meaning “meat or fish; non-vegetarian food”

Imagine an army (军) marching through a field of grass (艹) — they stop to eat meat dishes (荤). Or think: "Grass on top of army — they are eating meat!"

Write the top radical 艹 first with three strokes: horizontal, then two verticals. Then write bottom 军 starting with a dot, then a horizontal hook, followed by the rest. Keep the top wide enough to cover the bottom, and do not confuse 军's horizontal hook with a full hook.

荤 has grass on top and 军 (army) below, while 兹 has two dots on top and a silk-like bottom, and 芈 also has grass on top but a different bottom (like 羊 without the horizontal bar). Their meanings are also different: 荤 means meat, 兹 means 'now' or 'this', and 芈 is a surname.

荤 is common in words like 荤菜 (meat dish) and 吃荤 (to eat meat). In Chinese culture, it contrasts with 素 (vegetarian), and in Buddhism 荤 originally included strong-smelling vegetables like garlic. You will often see 荤素搭配 (meat and vegetable combination) on restaurant menus.

Common words containing 荤 include: 荤菜 (hūn cài) — meat dish; 荤素 (hūn sù) — meat and vegetables; 吃荤 (chī hūn) — to eat meat or pungent food (non-vegetarian).