How to Write 酸 (suān) — Meaning “sour”

Imagine a bottle of wine (酉) that has been left out too long and turned sour, with a face (the top of 夋) making a puckered expression. The bottom part 夂 reminds you of a person walking away from the bad taste. This links the wine radical to the idea of sourness.

Pay attention to the right side 夋: it has seven strokes starting with a left-falling stroke, then a hook, not a straight line. The 酉 radical has a horizontal stroke inside the box, and the whole character is balanced with the left side slightly narrower. A common mistake is to make the 酉 too wide or to forget the inner stroke.

酸 (suān) means sour, while 酡 (tuó) is a rarely used character meaning flushed with wine. 酢 (cù) is a formal variant of 醋 (vinegar) or also means sour in ancient texts. Visually, 酸 has 夋 on the right, 酡 has 它, and 酢 has 乍. In modern usage, only 酸 is common for sour taste.

酸 describes sour flavors, like in 酸奶 (yogurt) or 酸菜 (pickled cabbage). It also expresses body ache, as in 腿酸 (sore legs). Culturally, Chinese cuisine often balances 酸 (sour) with other flavors, and 酸 is one of the five basic tastes in Chinese food philosophy.

Common words containing 酸 include: 酸奶 (suān nǎi) — yogurt; 酸菜 (suān cài) — pickled cabbage; 腿酸 (tuǐ suān) — sore legs / aching legs.