How to Write 芷 (zhǐ) — Meaning “Angelica (a fragrant plant)”

Imagine walking through a field and smelling a wonderful herb (艹) that makes you stop (止) to enjoy the fragrance. The mental image of stopping for the scent will help you recall that 芷 means a fragrant plant.

Write the grass radical first: horizontal line, then two short vertical lines. Then write 止 with four strokes: vertical, horizontal, vertical, horizontal. A common mistake is making the bottom horizontal of 止 too long; it should be narrower than the top grass radical.

芷 has the grass radical on top and 止 (stop) below. 兹 does not have a grass radical; it is used for words like "now" or "this". 艻 also has a grass radical but the bottom is 力 (power) instead of 止, and it is a rare character for a type of plant.

芷 appears in the name of the medicinal herb 白芷 (bái zhǐ), used in traditional Chinese medicine for headaches and sinus issues. It also appears in classical literature and as a poetic name for fragrant plants, and is sometimes used in female names like 芷若, evoking elegance and fragrance.

Common words containing 芷 include: 白芷 (bái zhǐ) — Angelica dahurica (a Chinese herb); 芷若 (zhǐ ruò) — Fragrant plants (also a common name); 芳芷 (fāng zhǐ) — Fragrant plants.