How to Write 赃 (zāng) — Meaning “stolen goods; booty”

Picture a thief stealing a bag of money (贝) and hiding it in a village (庄). The stolen stash is the 赃 (zāng). Or think of the pinyin "zāng" like the English word "zang" (slang for stash) to help recall the meaning.

When writing 赃, first write the left radical 贝 with 4 strokes: vertical, horizontal fold, left stroke, and dot. Then write the right part 庄 with 6 strokes: dot, left, horizontal (for 广), then horizontal, vertical, horizontal (for 土). Common mistakes include making the 贝 too wide or confusing the stroke order of 广 (remember dot comes first).

The key difference is structure: 赃 is left-right (贝 + 庄), while 责 is top-bottom (a 龶 shape above 贝). 贤 is also left-right but has 又 (yòu) on the right, not 庄. In meaning, 赃 is about stolen goods, 责 means responsibility, and 贤 means worthy or virtuous.

You will find 赃 mostly in legal or crime-related contexts, such as news about corruption, theft, or police cases. Common words like 赃物 (stolen goods) and 赃款 (illicit money) appear in court reports. This character is not used in daily conversation, but it is important for understanding formal Chinese writing about crime and punishment.

Common words containing 赃 include: 赃物 (zāng wù) — stolen goods; booty; 赃款 (zāng kuǎn) — stolen money; illicit money; 销赃 (xiāo zāng) — To dispose of stolen goods.