How to Write 墉 (yōng) — Meaning “city wall”

Imagine a city wall (墉) made of earth (土) that is so common (庸) that every ancient city had one. The phrase 'common earth wall' can help you recall that 墉 means city wall and sounds like yōng. Visualize the wall as thick and solid, linking the component 庸 to the idea of 'ordinary but strong.'

Write the left radical 土 first (three strokes: horizontal, vertical, horizontal), then the right part 庸 (11 strokes). A common mistake is writing the right side too narrow or mixing up the order of strokes inside 庸 (the top is 庚-like, but note the horizontal strokes start from the left). Keep the left and right balanced, with the radical 土 slightly narrower than the right component.

墉 (yōng) means a city wall, while 堙 (yīn) means 'to block' or 'to fill in' (e.g., filling a moat) and 堞 (dié) refers to the battlements or parapet on top of a wall. Visually, the right sides differ: 墉 uses 庸, 堙 uses 垔, and 堞 uses 枼. In usage, 墉 refers to the whole wall structure, not just a part or an action.

墉 is rarely used in daily modern Chinese; it appears mostly in classical literature, historical texts, or formal descriptions of ancient architecture. For example, 城墉 refers to city walls in archaeological contexts. Culturally, 墉 evokes the importance of defensive walls in ancient Chinese civilization, symbolizing protection and the boundaries of a city.

Common words containing 墉 include: 城墉 (chéng yōng) — city wall; 墉垣 (yōng yuán) — walls; city walls; 崇墉 (chóng yōng) — high wall.