How to Write 蜿 (wān) — Meaning “Winding”

Picture a snake (虫) slithering along a winding path, with its body forming the curved shape of 宛. The snake's S-shaped movement visually matches the meaning of winding, so you can remember 蜿 as "a snake that twists and turns."

The 虫 radical on the left should be narrow and take up about one-third of the character's width, while the right part 宛 should be wider. A common mistake is making the 虫 too large or forgetting the bottom hook in 宛; pay attention to the correct stroke order: first write 虫, then 宛 with dots and curves.

While 蜿 means winding (used in 蜿蜒 for meandering paths or snakes), 蛐 (qū) refers to a cricket (insect) and 蛑 (móu) means a kind of crab. Visually, 蛐 has a different right part (曲 meaning bent) and 蛑 has 牟, so their meanings and pronunciations are completely different.

蜿 is almost always used in the compound word 蜿蜒 (wān yán), which describes winding, meandering shapes like a road, river, or a dragon's body. It appears in descriptive writing about landscapes or natural scenery, and is also used figuratively to describe a long, twisting line or path.

Common words containing 蜿 include: 蜿蜒 (wān yán) — Winding or meandering; 蜿蜒的小路 (wān yán de xiǎo lù) — A winding path; 蜿蜒起伏 (wān yán qǐ fú) — Winding and undulating.