How to Write 烝 (zhēng) — Meaning “to steam; numerous; ancient winter sacrifice”

Imagine a person (丞) lifting a lid off a pot of steaming food, with the four dots of fire (灬) below heating it up. The shape resembles someone holding a steamer basket over boiling water, with steam rising. This visual helps link the components to the meaning 'to steam'.

The top part is written first: symmetrical strokes starting with the left-falling stroke, then the right-falling stroke, followed by horizontal and vertical strokes. The bottom 灬 (fire radical) has four dots: the first three are leftward dots, and the last is a rightward dot. Common mistakes include making the top too wide or forgetting the dot above the left part.

烝 has the top 丞 (assist) and bottom 灬 meaning steam or numerous; 点 (diǎn) has 占 (divine) and 灬 and means 'dot' or 'point'; 烈 (liè) has 列 (arrange) and 灬 meaning 'fierce' or 'fiery'. Visually, 烝 has a more complex top, while 点 and 烈 have simpler top components. Unlike 点 and 烈, 烝 is rarely used in modern Chinese except in classical or literary contexts.

烝 is not common in everyday modern Chinese; it mainly appears in classical texts or literary expressions like 烝黎 (the masses) and 烝尝 (ancient winter and autumn sacrifices). The word 烝尝 refers to traditional seasonal rituals in Confucian culture, showing the character's historical importance. In modern usage, you might encounter it in poetry or historical discussions rather than daily conversation.

Common words containing 烝 include: 烝黎 (zhēng lí) — the common people; the masses; 烝尝 (zhēng cháng) — ancient seasonal sacrifices (winter and autumn); 烝烝 (zhēng zhēng) — flourishing; progressing day by day.