How to Write 氢 (qīng) — Meaning “hydrogen”

Think of 氢 as "the gas (气) that is light" — associate it with the word 轻 (qīng, light), which has the same sound and similar right part. You can imagine a balloon filled with hydrogen gas floating lightly in the air. The radical 气 reminds you it is a gas, and the sound qīng helps you remember the name.

When writing 氢, pay special attention to the radical 气: after the left-falling stroke and two horizontal strokes, you must write a curved hook (横折弯钩) that swings to the right, not a simple vertical line. The right part 巠 has five strokes starting with a horizontal-turning stroke (横撇), and the whole character should be balanced with the gas radical taking about one-third of the width. A common mistake is making the hook too small or forgetting the dot in 巠.

Common words containing 氢 include: 氢气 (qīng qì) — hydrogen gas; 氢能源 (qīng néng yuán) — hydrogen energy; 氢弹 (qīng dàn) — hydrogen bomb.