How to Write 呛 (qiāng/qiàng) — Meaning “to choke / to irritate (nose or throat)”

Imagine a person eating too quickly and a piece of food gets stuck in their throat — they cough and struggle. The left side 口 is the mouth, and the right side 仓 looks like a box or container that the food is trapped in. This visual of a "mouth-trapped-in-a-warehouse" can help you recall the choking feeling.

Write 呛 as 口 first (vertical stroke, then horizontal stroke, then bottom horizontal), then 仓: start with the top component 人 (left stroke, right stroke), then the bottom part 巳 (folded stroke, then horizontal stroke, then vertical hook). A common mistake is making the right side too wide or confusing the bottom component with 已 or 己 — remember the bottom is like a snake with a closed top.

呛 (qiāng) means to choke or irritate, while 卟 (bǔ) is an onomatopoeia for a popping sound and is rarely used. 古 (gǔ) means ancient or old. Visually, 呛 has a 口 on the left and 仓 on the right, 卟 has 口 on the left and 卜 (divination) on the right, and 古 is 十 (ten) on top with 口 below. Their meanings and pronunciations are completely different.

呛 is commonly used for physical choking on food or water (呛着) or for strong smells that irritate the nose or throat (呛鼻). In everyday speech, 够呛 (gòu qiàng) is a very common expression meaning "unbearable" or "really tough," like saying a task is too difficult. It is also used in cooking to describe sharp, pungent flavors, especially from spices or smoke.

Common words containing 呛 include: 呛着 (qiāng zhe) — choking; 够呛 (gòu qiàng) — Unbearable / tough; 呛鼻 (qiàng bí) — pungent / irritating to the nose.