How to Write 糖 (táng) — Meaning “Sugar”

Imagine a bag of rice (米) being processed into sweet, white granules — that is “sugar.” Then picture the right side 唐 as a tall building with a roof, where workers are stirring the sugar, and think "táng" like "tong" (sugar tongs). This links the shape to both the meaning and pronunciation.

Write the left radical 米 first (four strokes: dot, dot, horizontal, vertical, then left-falling and right-falling as the last two). The right part 唐 has a wide 广 (roof) covering a 肀 with a mouth below; make sure the left part is narrow and the right part is wider. A common mistake is to make 米 too wide or to write the roof of 唐 without extending it over the lower components.

粹 (cuì) means "pure" or "essence" and also uses 米, but its right side is 卒 (soldier), not 唐 — so the meaning and pronunciation are completely different. 粼 (lín) describes clear water ripples and has a left part 米 with three extra short strokes on top and a different right side; it is unrelated to food or sweetness. Only 糖 specifically refers to sugar or sweet things.

糖 appears in everyday words like 糖果 (candy), 白糖 (white sugar), and 口香糖 (chewing gum). In Chinese culture, 糖 is often associated with happy occasions — for example, giving candy at weddings symbolizes a sweet life. It is also used in idioms and phrases to mean "sweet" or "pleasing" when describing words or behavior.

Common words containing 糖 include: 糖果 (táng guǒ) — Candy; 白糖 (bái táng) — white sugar; 口香糖 (kǒu xiāng táng) — chewing gum.