How to Write 崤 (xiáo) — Meaning “Xiao (name of a mountain)”

Imagine hiking on a mountain (山) and finding a delicious meal (肴) waiting at the top – that is Xiao Mountain. The picture of food on a mountain helps you link the meaning to the shape. Just remember: "Mountain food" sounds like "Xiao" (xiáo).

Write the left radical 山 first, then the right side 肴. The right side has 8 strokes: start with a left-falling stroke, then a dot, a horizontal, a left-falling, a vertical, a horizontal hook, and two horizontal strokes at the bottom. A common mistake is making the right side too wide or confusing the bottom part of 肴 with 月 – keep it balanced and compact.

The main difference is the right side: 崤 uses 肴 (food), 峇 uses 合 (to close), and 峋 uses 旬 (ten-day period). Visually, 崤 has a more complex right side with a hook stroke, while 峇 is simpler and 峋 has a box-like 旬. In meaning, 崤 is only for the Xiao mountain name, while 峋 appears in 嶙峋 (rugged).

崤 is rarely used in daily conversation, but it appears in historical and geographical contexts, such as the mountain 崤山 in Henan province or the strategic pass 崤函. It is famous from the ancient Battle of Xiao (崤之战) in Chinese history. If you see this character, it is almost always referring to that specific location or classical texts.

Common words containing 崤 include: 崤山 (xiáo shān) — Xiao Mountain; 崤函 (xiáo hán) — Xiao and Han (strategic mountain passes); 崤谷 (xiáo gǔ) — Xiao Valley.