How to Write 蘸 (zhàn) — Meaning “to dip (in liquid or sauce)”

Imagine a piece of grass (艹) reaching into a wine jar (酉) and coming out so hot it burns (焦) your mouth. This silly picture links all three parts to the idea of dipping into a flavorful liquid.

Pay attention to the bottom left part 酉 — it has a short horizontal line inside, not a full 酋. Also, the right part 焦 has 隹 (bird) on top of 灬 (fire), so don't forget the four dots of fire. The top 艹 must be wide enough to cover the whole character.

蘸 means "to dip in liquid or sauce" and is common in cooking. In contrast, 䕭 is a rare character with no clear modern usage, and 蘖 (niè) refers to a plant sprout or tiller. Visually, 蘸 contains 酉 and 焦, while 蘖 has 木 (tree) and 辛 (spice) under its grass radical.

You use 蘸 when talking about dipping food into sauces or liquids, like 蘸酱 (dip in sauce) for dumplings or 蘸醋 (dip in vinegar) for seafood. In Chinese culture, dipping sauces are a key part of meals such as hot pot and jiaozi (dumplings), making this character very practical for food lovers.

Common words containing 蘸 include: 蘸酱 (zhàn jiàng) — to dip in sauce; 蘸水 (zhàn shuǐ) — to dip in water; 蘸醋 (zhàn cù) — to dip in vinegar.