How to Write 厪 (jǐn) — Meaning “diligent; concerned; hut”

Imagine a diligent worker packing clay (堇) bricks inside a small cliff-side hut (厂) to build a wall. The picture of someone continually shaping clay in a hut will remind you that 厪 means both "hut" and "diligent." You can also remember that the top part of 堇 looks like two hands working busily.

Start with the top horizontal stroke of 厂, then draw the left vertical stroke without lifting the pen, covering the space for the inner part. Inside, write 堇: first the top horizontal and vertical strokes (like "廿" but not crossing), then the middle 口, and finally 土 at the bottom. A common mistake is making the 厂 too small or writing 堇 with an extra stroke in the top section.

厪 contains 堇 inside (a phonetic component related to clay/effort), while 厢 has 相 (mutual) and means a side room of a house. 厣 contains 厌 (dislike) and means a lid or shell. Visually, the inner part of 厪 is more complex and balanced, whereas 厢 uses 相 which has a 目 on the left and 木 on the right, and 厣 has a simpler 厌 shape.

厪 is not common in daily speech or the HSK list; it appears mostly in older or literary texts. You might see it in compound words like 厪念 (to miss someone deeply), 厪劳 (diligent labor), and 厪虑 (to worry about). It often carries a formal or poetic tone, similar to using "diligent" or "concerned" in classic poetry.

Common words containing 厪 include: 厪念 (jǐn niàn) — to be concerned about; to miss; 厪劳 (jǐn láo) — diligent; hardworking; 厪虑 (jǐn lǜ) — to worry; concern.