How to Write 蟀 (shuài) — Meaning “cricket”

Imagine a cricket (虫) playing a little drum that goes "shuài-shuài" — the right side 率 can be visualized as a drum with two sticks. This connects the insect radical to the sound "shuài" and helps you recall the full character.

The left side 虫 must be written narrow and tall, while the right side 率 is wider and takes up more space. A common mistake is making the left side too big or forgetting to write the small dot above the leftmost part of 率. Remember that 蟀 has 17 strokes, so take care to write the right side with balanced horizontal strokes.

蟀 has the phonetic component 率 on the right, while 蝌 has 科 (kē) and 蝎 has 曷 (hé). Meaningwise, 蝌 means "tadpole" and 蝎 means "scorpion," whereas 蟀 specifically refers to a cricket. Visually, the right side of 蟀 has more complex strokes and a different shape than the simpler 科 or 曷.

蟀 mainly appears in the word 蟋蟀 (xī shuài, cricket) and in activities like 斗蟋蟀 (dòu xī shuài, cricket fighting), a traditional pastime in China. The sound of crickets, written as 蟋蟀声 (xī shuài shēng), is often associated with autumn nights in Chinese poetry and culture. This character is not very common in daily conversation but appears in literature and cultural contexts.

Common words containing 蟀 include: 蟋蟀 (xī shuài) — cricket; 斗蟋蟀 (dòu xī shuài) — Cricket fighting; 蟋蟀声 (xī shuài shēng) — the sound of crickets.