How to Write 猞 (shē) — Meaning “lynx (used in 猞猁)”

Imagine a lynx (猞) sneaking into a house (舍) to take shelter, with the animal radical 犭 reminding you it’s a wild creature. The sound "shē" can be linked to the word "shelter" to help recall the meaning. This mental picture connects the left animal radical and the right house-like part.

The left radical 犭 has three strokes: a slanted dash, a curved hook, and another slanted dash—keep it narrow. The right part 舍 has two "mouth" shapes (口) stacked inside, so don’t confuse them with other components. Common mistakes include making the right side too tall or adding extra strokes to the house-like structure.

猞 has 舍 (shē) on the right, while 狠 has 艮 (gěn) and means "cruel" or "fierce." 狊 is a very rare character with a different right side (目+犬) and is not used in modern Chinese. Visually, 猞’s right side looks like a roof over a mouth, whereas 狠’s right side has a different shape with a horizontal line and a little hook.

猞 appears almost exclusively in the compound word 猞猁 (shēlì), which means "lynx." It is not part of the HSK vocabulary and is rarely used alone. The fur of the lynx (猞猁皮) has been historically used in traditional Chinese clothing, but the character itself is quite specialized.

Common words containing 猞 include: 猞猁 (shē lì) — lynx; 猞猁狲 (shē lì sūn) — lynx; 猞猁皮 (shē lì pí) — lynx fur; lynx pelt.