How to Write 莛 (tíng) — Meaning “stalk (of grass or grain)”

Imagine a tall grass stalk (艹) growing straight up like a court (廷) building's pillar. The "court" part 廷 contains 廴 (a walking motion) and 土 (earth), so picture the stalk rising from the earth into a formal garden court. This visual helps you link the plant radical to the idea of a sturdy stalk.

Pay attention to the proportion: the top grass radical (艹) should be wide and flat, covering about one-third of the character. The lower component 廷 has a long horizontal stroke (一) that extends to the right, so don't make it too short. A common mistake is writing the radical too narrow or forgetting the downward stroke within 廴.

莛 (stalk) always has the 艹 radical with a clear 廷 below, while 兹 (zī, this/now) uses two 玄 components and has no grass meaning. 芈 (mǐ, a surname or sheep bleat) combines 艹 with 㐄 (a cross shape) and is unrelated to plant stems. Visually, 莛 has the distinct 廴 element that the others lack.

莛 appears mainly in botanical or agricultural contexts, such as 麦莛 (wheat stalk) and 抽莛 (when a plant sends up a flower stalk). It is not a common daily character but is useful for describing parts of cereal crops. You might encounter it in farming manuals or plant biology texts.

Common words containing 莛 include: 麦莛 (mài tíng) — Wheat stalk; 莛子 (tíng zi) — stalk; stem; 抽莛 (chōu tíng) — to bolt (of a plant); to grow a flower stalk.