How to Write 霉 (méi) — Meaning “Mold; mildew”

Imagine a rainy season where it rains (雨) every (每) day, causing everything to get moldy. Another trick is to think of "rain" covering "each" thing, leading to mildew.

Write the top radical 雨 first: left horizontal, then vertical, then horizontal, vertical, then the four dots. The bottom part 每 starts with a left-falling stroke, then horizontal, vertical, horizontal stroke, and finally a horizontal line. A common mistake is making the 雨 component too wide or confusing the bottom 每 with 母.

霉 has 雨 + 每 and means "mold," while 零 (líng) has 雨 + 令 meaning "zero," and 雷 (léi) has 雨 + 田 meaning "thunder." Visually, the bottom part is different: 每, 令, and 田. In usage, 霉 relates to mold and bad luck, not numbers or weather phenomena.

霉 is common in words like 发霉 (to go moldy) and 倒霉 (unlucky). The term 霉雨 refers to the "plum rains" in East Asia, a humid season when mold easily forms. Culturally, 倒霉 is a very frequent expression for bad luck, often used in daily conversation.

Common words containing 霉 include: 发霉 (fā méi) — to go moldy; to become mildewed; 倒霉 (dǎo méi) — Unlucky; out of luck.; 霉雨 (méi yǔ) — Plum rains; rainy season in East Asia.