How to Write 埇 (yǒng) — Meaning “raised path”

Imagine a raised path made of dirt (土) that looks like a long corridor (甬) — picture a narrow bridge over a field. The right side 甬 also looks like a person walking on a path, which reinforces the meaning. Visualize this scene whenever you see 埇.

Write the left radical 土 first (horizontal, vertical, horizontal) with a narrow width. Then add the right part 甬, which starts with a horizontal hook, then vertical, two dots, then a second horizontal hook, horizontal, and final vertical. A common mistake is to confuse the bottom of 甬 with 用 — remember 甬 has two dots inside while 用 has a single vertical line.

埇 means raised path, while 坡 means slope or hill and uses the component 皮 (skin) on the right. 坤 means earth or the female principle and uses the component 申 (declare) on the right. Visually, 埇 has the unique 甬 part, whereas 坡 has 皮 and 坤 has 申.

埇 is quite rare in everyday speech, but it appears in place names such as 埇桥 (Yongqiao), a district in Anhui province. It can also be found in classical literature describing raised roads or paths. For most learners, you only need to recognize it in geographic names or historical texts.

Common words containing 埇 include: 埇桥 (yǒng qiáo) — Yongqiao (place name); 埇路 (yǒng lù) — raised road; 埇上 (yǒng shàng) — on the raised path.