How to Write 栗 (lì) — Meaning “Chestnut”

Imagine a chestnut tree with a spiky outer shell that looks like a western hat (覀) sitting on top of wood (木). You can picture the word 'west' on a tree that grows chestnuts, helping you recall the shape and meaning.

Pay attention to the top part 覀: it looks like 西 but the last stroke is a vertical line, not a horizontal one; the bottom of 覀 must be closed. The bottom 木 should have a horizontal stroke that is slightly shorter than the top width, and the left and right branches should balance nicely.

Unlike 栗 (chestnut tree), 杪 (miǎo) means 'treetop' and has a different phonetic component 少. 杭 (háng) usually refers to Hangzhou or a type of boat, with 木 plus 亢. Visually, 栗 has the unique top 覀, while 杪 has 少 on top and 杭 has 亢 on the right.

栗 appears in common words like 栗子 (lì zi, chestnut) and 板栗 (bǎn lì, chestnut), often referring to the edible nut sold as street food in autumn. 栗色 (lì sè) means maroon or chestnut color, used in fashion or design. Culturally, chestnuts are associated with warmth and festival foods during Chinese New Year.

Common words containing 栗 include: 栗子 (lì zi) — Chestnut; 板栗 (bǎn lì) — chestnut; 栗色 (lì sè) — Chestnut color / Maroon.