How to Write 涨 (zhǎng/zhàng) — Meaning “To rise (of prices or water levels)”

Imagine a bow (弓) being stretched (张) by water (氵) — as the bow pulls, the water level rises. You can also think of 'water stretching up' to recall that 涨 means 'to rise'.

The right side 张 is written with seven strokes: first the horizontal fold hook (㇆), then two strokes inside, and finally a short stroke and a left-falling stroke. A common mistake is making the left radical 氵 too large or misplacing the third dot; keep the water radical compact so the character balances.

涨 (zhǎng) uses the right side 张 (stretch) and means 'to rise', while 沫 (mò) has 末 (end) on the right and means 'foam'. 沭 (shù) has 术 (art) on the right and is a river name. Visually, the right components are different: 涨 has 张 with a bow (弓) inside, 沫 has 末 with a longer top stroke, and 沭 has 术 with a dot and a downward hook.

涨 is most commonly used for prices going up, as in 涨价 (zhǎng jià, 'price increase'), and for tides, as in 涨潮 (zhǎng cháo, 'high tide'). It also appears in idioms like 头昏脑涨 (tóu hūn nǎo zhàng) to describe feeling dizzy, like your head is 'swelling' or rising with pressure.

Common words containing 涨 include: 涨价 (zhǎng jià) — To increase in price; 涨潮 (zhǎng cháo) — High tide; 头昏脑涨 (tóu hūn nǎo zhàng) — Dizzy and light-headed; one's head is swimming..