How to Write 樵 (qiáo) — Meaning “firewood”

Imagine a tree (木) that has been scorched by fire (焦)—this burned wood is perfect for use as firewood. The mental picture of a tree with flames helps you link the left and right parts to the meaning.

The left side 木 becomes a narrow radical with the last stroke turning into a dot instead of a right-falling stroke. The right side 焦 has four strokes on top (a short left-falling stroke, then three dots), and below that the 灬 (fire radical) must be written as four dots, not a horizontal line.

樵 (firewood) contains 焦 on the right, while 榍 (a type of tree) has 屑 (xiè) on the right, and 榕 (banyan tree) has 容 (róng) on the right. Focus on the right-side component: 焦 has a top part with four strokes and a fire bottom, which is unique to 樵.

樵 appears mainly in classical or literary contexts, like in the word 樵夫 (woodcutter) or 樵采 (to gather firewood). It is rarely used in daily conversation but often shows up in poetry or historical stories to describe rural or mountain life.

Common words containing 樵 include: 樵夫 (qiáo fū) — woodcutter; 樵采 (qiáo cǎi) — to gather firewood; 樵路 (qiáo lù) — woodcutter's path.