How to Write 蛘 (yáng) — Meaning “weevil”

Picture a sheep (羊) covered with tiny insects (虫) — the sheep looks unhappy because the bugs are annoying it. This visual helps you remember that 蛘 refers to a pesky insect, the weevil.

When writing 蛘, make the left radical 虫 narrower and the right part 羊 wider to keep balanced proportions. A common mistake is writing the dot in 虫 too large or forgetting it; also ensure the bottom horizontal stroke of 羊 is the longest.

蛘 has 羊 (sheep) on the right, while 蚊 has 文 (writing) and 蚋 has 芮 (a plant name). In meaning, 蛘 specifically means 'weevil' (grain pest), 蚊 means 'mosquito', and 蚋 means 'gnat' or small biting fly.

蛘 is rare in daily speech and mainly appears in agricultural or entomological texts, such as 蛘子 (weevil) or 抓蛘子 (catching weevils). It has no special cultural significance and is not part of common idioms or proverbs.

Common words containing 蛘 include: 蛘子 (yáng zi) — weevil; 抓蛘子 (zhuā yáng zi) — to catch weevils; 蛘虫 (yáng chóng) — weevil.