How to Write 毹 (shū) — Meaning “woollen rug / carpet”

Imagine a woolly rug (毛) that you shoo away dust from — the sound "shū" matches the character's pronunciation. Alternatively, picture the right side 俞 as a patterned design on a high-quality rug. Connecting the visual of wool and the action of shooing helps lock in the meaning and sound.

Write the left radical 毛 first (4 strokes: stroke order 撇, 横, 横, 竖弯钩), then the right part 俞 (9 strokes). A common mistake is making the right side too narrow or forgetting the horizontal stroke inside 俞 (the second horizontal in the lower part). Keep the left side slightly narrower and the right side balanced to avoid crowding.

Unlike 毫 (háo), which means fine hair or a writing brush, 毹 specifically means a woollen rug or carpet; visually, 毫 has a different component below 毛 (亳) while 毹 has 俞. Compared to 毯 (tǎn, a blanket or thick rug), 毹 often refers to a stage carpet in classical theater, while 毯 is a general term for any thick fabric covering.

毹 is rarely used alone in modern everyday speech; it usually appears in the compound 氍毹 (qú shū), which traditionally refers to a woollen rug used on stage and later became a poetic term for "the stage" itself. You may also see 红毹 (hóng shū) for a red carpet in theater contexts. Knowing this character adds cultural depth when reading classical or theatrical Chinese texts.

Common words containing 毹 include: 氍毹 (qú shū) — woollen rug / the stage; 红毹 (hóng shū) — red carpet (often used in theater); 毹席 (shū xí) — woollen mat / rug.