How to Write 茆 (máo) — Meaning “Water shield (aquatic plant)”

Imagine a water shield plant floating on a pond, with its leaves shaped like a rabbit's ears — the top 艹 is like grass, and the bottom 卯 looks like two ears (卯 resembles ears in Chinese). This visual trick helps you recall that 茆 is a water plant with ear-like leaves.

Write the top 艹 first as three strokes (horizontal, vertical, vertical), then write 卯 with its four strokes starting with the left part. A common mistake is making the bottom 卯 too wide — keep it narrow under the grass radical so the character stays balanced.

茆 (máo) has the grass radical 艹 and the phonetic 卯, meaning a specific aquatic plant. 兹 (zī) also has 艹 but with 兹 below, meaning 'this' or 'now' in literary Chinese. 艻 (lè) has 艹 and 力, meaning a type of grass; unlike 茆, it is not used in surnames or place names.

茆 is uncommon in daily speech but appears in the surname 茆 (Máo) and in specific terms like 茆草 (thatch grass) and 茆田 (water shield field). It is mostly found in classical texts or local dialects referring to the water shield plant, which is eaten as a delicacy in some regions.

Common words containing 茆 include: 茆草 (máo cǎo) — Thatch grass; 茆田 (máo tián) — Water shield field; 姓茆 (xìng máo) — Surname Mao.