How to Write 芥 (jiè) — Meaning “Mustard”

Imagine a "mustard" plant growing out of a small shell (介) on the ground. The shell protects the seeds, just like mustard seeds are small but spicy. This connects the bottom part 介 to the plant meaning.

Make sure the top radical 艹 covers the entire character, with the horizontal stroke slightly longer than the width of 介 below. The bottom part 介 has four strokes: a small upward stroke on the left, a left-falling stroke, a right-falling stroke, and a vertical stroke in the middle—do not confuse it with 个 (gè).

芥 (jiè) means "mustard" and has the grass radical plus 介. 兹 (zī or cí) means "now" or "this" and has two 幺 (silk) components under grass. 艻 (lè) is a rare character meaning "fragrant plant" and uses 艹 with 力 (power) underneath, not 介.

芥 appears in common food names like 芥末 (jiè mo, mustard or wasabi paste) and 芥蓝 (jiè lán, Chinese broccoli). It is also used in 芥菜 (jiè cài, mustard greens), a popular vegetable in Chinese cooking. The character is not part of HSK vocabulary but is useful for understanding menus.

Common words containing 芥 include: 芥末 (jiè mò) — Mustard / Wasabi; 芥蓝 (jiè lán) — Chinese broccoli (Gai lan); 芥菜 (jiè cài) — Mustard greens.