How to Write 麓 (lù) — Meaning “Foot of a mountain”

Imagine a deer (鹿) standing at the base of a forest (林), looking up at a mountain — that spot is the foot of the mountain, or 麓. The deer has 19 spots on its back, matching the stroke count.

Start by writing the deer radical 鹿 on top — it has 11 strokes and its width should be balanced. Then add 林 below, making sure the left 木 is narrower and the right 木 slightly wider so the whole character stays compact. A common mistake is making the bottom 林 too large, which throws off the proportion.

鏖 (áo) means "fierce battle" and has 金 (metal) under 鹿 — it is completely different in meaning. 麋 (mí) means "elk" and is just 鹿 with 米 under it, while 麓 has 林 (forest) under 鹿. Visually, 麓 has the tree radical twice, 麋 has rice, and 鏖 has metal.

麓 is used almost exclusively in place names referring to hills or mountain foothills, like 山麓 (mountain foot) or 麓山 (Lushan Hill). It appears in classical poetry and scenic spot names, evoking a peaceful, forested mountain setting — not common in daily conversation.

Common words containing 麓 include: 山麓 (shān lù) — Foot of a mountain; 麓山 (lù shān) — Lushan / Foot of the mountain; 林麓 (lín lù) — foot of a wooded hill.