How to Write 畑 (tián) — Meaning “Dry field”

Imagine a farmer setting fire to a field (田) to burn off weeds, leaving it dry and ready for planting. The fire (火) on the left reminds you of the burning process. Visualize the flames next to the field to link the character to its meaning.

Write the fire radical 火 on the left as a narrow shape, with the last stroke (right-falling dot) ending slightly higher. Then add the 田 component on the right, making it slightly wider than the fire part. A common mistake is making the fire too wide or forgetting that the two parts are balanced side by side.

畑 has fire (火) on the left and field (田) on the right, meaning dry field. 男 (male) has field on top and strength (力) below. 甸 (pasture) has a wrapping element (勹) around the field. Visually, 畑 is left-right, 男 is top-bottom, and 甸 has a top enclosure.

In modern Chinese, 畑 is very rare and is not part of the HSK vocabulary; it is mainly seen in agricultural terms or as a variant character. It is much more common in Japanese, where it appears in surnames and place names like 畑中 (Hatanaka). If you encounter it in Chinese, it usually refers to a dry field in old or specialized texts.

Common words containing 畑 include: 畑 (tián) — Dry field.