How to Write 婿 (xù) — Meaning “Son-in-law; husband.”

Imagine a son-in-law (婿) as a helpful 'woman's clerk' (女 + 胥) who always waits on his wife's family. Another visual trick: the right side 胥 looks like a man with a hat (the top part) and a round face (月), so picture a polite man wearing a hat visiting his wife's parents.

Pay attention to the right part 胥: the top portion is written as 疋 (like a series of horizontal and downward strokes), not as 正 or 止. The bottom is 月 (moon), not 冂. Keep the left radical 女 narrow and the right side wider so the character balances. A common mistake is confusing the top of 胥 with 疋 from other characters.

婿 (xù) means 'son-in-law' or 'husband' and uses the radical 女 with 胥. 姬 (jī) means 'lady' or 'concubine' and has 女 on the left with a right component that looks like 臣 (minister). 娉 (pīng) means 'elegant' or 'lady' and has 女 on the left with 甹 (pīng) on the right. Their pronunciations and meanings are completely different, even though all share the 女 radical.

婿 appears most often in the word 女婿 (nǚxù), meaning 'son-in-law'—for example, when introducing your daughter's husband. It is also used in formal terms like 夫婿 (fū xù, husband) and in family references like 妹婿 (mèi xù, younger sister's husband). Culturally, calling someone your 女婿 shows a respectful family connection, and the term is common in both spoken and written Chinese, though not in casual slang.

Common words containing 婿 include: 女婿 (nǚ xù) — son-in-law; 夫婿 (fū xù) — Husband; 妹婿 (mèi xù) — Younger sister's husband (brother-in-law)..