How to Write 诊 (zhěn) — Meaning “To examine (medically) / To diagnose”

Imagine a doctor (讠 representing speech) asking a patient to show their hand with three fingers (like the three strokes in 彡 of 㐱) to feel their pulse. The right side 㐱 looks like a person (人) with three lines (彡) representing pulse or breath, so you remember 诊 as 'speaking while checking the pulse'.

Write the left radical 讠 first: dot, then horizontal fold (like a hook). Then the right side 㐱: start with a left-falling stroke, then a right-falling stroke (forming a person shape), followed by three short left-falling strokes (彡). A common mistake is making the right side too wide or confusing the three strokes of 彡 with a single stroke; keep the left narrow and the right slightly wider.

All three share the radical 讠, but the right side differs. 讦 (jié) has 干 (a simple horizontal-vertical cross) and means 'to accuse' or 'expose'. 讧 (hòng) has 工 (a horizontal-vertical shape with a top bar) and means 'quarrel' or 'strife'. 诊 (zhěn) has 㐱 (a person above three strokes) and specifically relates to medical examination, not arguing.

诊 is common in medical settings: 诊断 (diagnosis), 门诊 (outpatient service), and 诊所 (clinic). In traditional Chinese medicine, 诊 refers to the four diagnostic methods: observing (望), listening/smelling (闻), asking (问), and pulse-taking (切). It appears in everyday phrases like '去看门诊' (go to the outpatient department).

Common words containing 诊 include: 诊断 (zhěn duàn) — Diagnosis / To diagnose; 门诊 (mén zhěn) — Outpatient service; 诊所 (zhěn suǒ) — Clinic.