How to Write 葄 (zuò) — Meaning “straw mat; cushion”

Imagine a straw mat made of grass (艹) placed on the floor of a "zoo" (because "zuò" sounds like "zoo" when said quickly). You sit on it like a cushion.

Write the grass radical 艹 first with three strokes: horizontal, then two verticals. Then write 乍: start with a left-falling stroke, then horizontal, vertical, and finally horizontal. Make sure the grass radical is not too wide and 乍 fits neatly underneath.

葄 (straw mat) differs from 莿 (thorn) which has 刺 (thorn) below, and 菀 (lush) which has 宛 (curved) below. Visually, 葄 has 乍, 莿 has 剌, and 菀 has 宛 — each bottom part is unique.

葄 is a rare character not used in modern daily Chinese. You can find it in classical texts or in words like 葄枕 (straw pillow) and 葄席 (straw mat), which describe simple bedding from ancient times.

Common words containing 葄 include: 葄枕 (zuò zhěn) — straw pillow; 葄席 (zuò xí) — straw mat; 葄草 (zuò cǎo) — straw; grass for mats.