How to Write 蛴 (qí) — Meaning “Grub”

Imagine a grub (虫) that is very "neat" or "even" in shape — the right side 齐 means "neat" or "together." You can think: a grub looks like a smooth, even worm without legs, so it is a "neat insect" (虫 + 齐).

Write the left part 虫 first with 6 strokes: vertical, horizontal fold, horizontal, vertical, horizontal, dot. Then write the right part 齐 with 6 strokes: dot, horizontal, left-falling, right-falling, vertical, horizontal. A common mistake is making the right side too narrow or forgetting the dot above the 虫.

All three share the insect radical 虫, but their right parts differ. 蚊 has 文 (wén) on the right and means "mosquito." 蚋 has 内 (nèi) on the right and means "gnat." 蛴 has 齐 (qí) on the right and means "grub." Visually, the right side of 蛴 is wider and has a vertical stroke in the middle.

蛴 is rarely used alone; it almost always appears in the compound word 蛴螬 (qí cáo), meaning "white grub." This term is common in agriculture when discussing soil pests or in traditional Chinese medicine, where dried grubs are used to make medicine for certain ailments.

Common words containing 蛴 include: 蛴螬 (qí cáo) — Grub / White grub; 捉蛴螬 (zhuō qí cáo) — to catch grubs; 蛴螬药 (qí cáo yào) — Medicine derived from grubs.