How to Write 醍 (tí) — Meaning “clarified butter”

Imagine "clarified butter" (醍) as a "ti" (like tea) mixed with fermented ingredients—so picture 酉 (wine jar) with 是 (to be) inside, meaning "this is the butter." Another trick: 醍 looks like a jar (酉) of pure golden butter that shines with "wisdom" (醍醐灌顶).

Pay attention to the left side 酉: the inner strokes are a horizontal line then two vertical strokes, not a full box—common mistake is to write a closed square. The right side 是 has a long horizontal stroke crossing the top of the lower part; make sure the bottom part (疋) is balanced and not too wide. Overall, 16 strokes require careful spacing between left and right halves.

酲 (chéng) means "to sober up after drinking" and often appears in idioms about hangovers, while 醍 specifically refers to clarified butter. 酴 (tú) means "starter for wine" or "yeast," and is related to fermentation processes. Visually, 醍 has 是 on the right, 酲 has 呈 (chéng), and 酴 has 余 (yú)—different phonetic components signal different meanings and pronunciations.

醍 is almost never used alone; it appears in the term 醍醐 (tíhú, ghee) and the idiom 醍醐灌顶 (tíhú guàn dǐng), which describes suddenly gaining deep wisdom—like being poured with pure butter. This idiom is often used in Buddhism and daily speech to express enlightenment or a mind-opening realization, making 醍 a culturally rich but rare character.

Common words containing 醍 include: 醍醐 (tí hú) — ghee / clarified butter; 醍醐灌顶 (tí hú guàn dǐng) — to be filled with wisdom / sudden enlightenment; 酥醍 (sū tí) — clarified butter.