How to Write 莺 (yīng) — Meaning “Warbler / Oriole”

Picture a yellow oriole singing on a grassy field: the top part 艹 looks like grass, and the bottom part resembles a bird with a curved beak. You can remember it as 'grass (艹) plus a warbler's song' to link the meaning and sound.

Write the grass radical (艹) first as two horizontal lines, then the lower part starting with a vertical stroke. A common mistake is making the bottom part too wide; keep it compact and centered under the radical. The total is 10 strokes, with the last stroke being a dot.

莺 means 'warbler' and has a bird-related meaning, while 兹 (zī) means 'now' or 'this' and has a different bottom component (厶). 苑 (yuàn) means 'garden' or 'park' and has a radical 艹 but a different lower part (夗). Visually, 莺 has a 鸟-like bottom structure, unlike the other two.

莺 appears in poetic or descriptive contexts, often in terms like 黄莺 (oriole) or 莺歌 (oriole's song). It is common in classical Chinese poetry to evoke spring or beauty, and today it appears in names of parks, restaurants, or products to suggest elegance and nature.

Common words containing 莺 include: 黄莺 (huáng yīng) — oriole; 莺歌 (yīng gē) — The song of an oriole; 莺语 (yīng yǔ) — The chirping of orioles.