How to Write 橾 (shū) — Meaning “axle hole; hub hole”

Imagine a wooden wheel with many spokes (like the three '口' in 喿) meeting at the center hub hole. The top part of 喿 looks like three small openings converging into one central axle hole. This visual of multiple parts coming together at a wooden center can help you recall that 橾 means hub or axle hole.

The character has 17 strokes, and the right side 喿 is complex with three '口' stacked vertically, each slightly narrower than the one below. A common mistake is making the top '口' too large or misaligning the middle '口'. Ensure the left 木 radical is written with a full horizontal stroke and a downward diagonal on the fourth stroke, keeping the right side balanced.

橾 (shū) means axle hole or hub hole, while 槭 (qì) refers to a maple tree and 槲 (hú) means oak tree. Visually, 橾 has the complex right side 喿, whereas 槭 has 戚 (qī) on the right and 槲 has 斛 (hú) on the right. Their meanings are completely unrelated to the wooden part of a wheel, unlike 橾.

橾 is a very rare character, mostly found in ancient texts about chariot or wheel making, such as in technical descriptions of axle components. In modern Chinese, it is almost never used in daily conversation or writing, and even the common words like 橾毂 and 橾轴 are archaic. You may encounter it in historical or archaeological discussions of traditional Chinese vehicles.

Common words containing 橾 include: 橾毂 (shū gǔ) — wheel hub; 橾轴 (shū zhóu) — axle; 橾孔 (shū kǒng) — axle hole.