How to Write 髁 (kē) — Meaning “condyle”

Imagine a bone (骨) with a fruit (果) stuck on its end — this funny picture helps you recall that a condyle is the rounded, fruit-like bump at the end of a bone. The word "condyle" sounds a bit like "candy" and fruit, so think of a "fruit candy on a bone."

The left radical 骨 has a narrow shape and is written first, with the top part 冎 (bones) and the bottom 月 (meat) slightly compressed. The right side 果 is wider and takes up more space; be careful not to make the left side too big. A common mistake is writing the 骨 radical too wide, so keep it slim to balance the character.

骸 (hái) means skeleton or corpse, with the component 亥, and refers to the whole body of bones. 骺 (hóu) means epiphysis, the end part of a long bone, using 后. In contrast, 髁 (kē) specifically means condyle, which is a rounded projection at a joint, like the ankle bones called 内髁 and 外髁.

髁 appears mainly in medical and anatomical contexts, such as 髁骨 (condyle bone), 内髁 (medial malleolus, inner ankle bone), and 外髁 (lateral malleolus, outer ankle bone). It is not used in everyday conversation but is essential for describing bone structures in Chinese medicine or sports injury terminology.

Common words containing 髁 include: 髁骨 (kē gǔ) — condyle bone; 内髁 (nèi kē) — medial malleolus; inner ankle bone; 外髁 (wài kē) — Lateral malleolus (outer ankle bone)..