稞

kē
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 highland barley (only in 青稞)

Examples

HSK 7-9
Qīng kē shì Qīng zàng gāoyuán de zhǔyào liángshi zuòwù.
Highland barley is the main grain crop on the Qinghai-Tibet plateau.

Tips

history
稞 is not used independently in modern Chinese; it appears almost only in 青稞 ('highland barley'), the staple grain of Tibet and Qinghai. The grain radical 禾 marks it as a cereal; 果 supplies the sound.
culture
青稞 is roasted and ground into 糌粑 and brewed into highland barley wine, both cornerstones of Tibetan diet.

Components

radical
禾 hé
grain; cereal plant
禾 (standing grain) is the indexing radical; it marks 稞 as a cereal crop, grouping it with grain words like 稻 and 稷.
phonetic
果 guǒ
phonetic element
果 supplies the reading for 稞, with the initial and tone drifting; it is the same phonetic seen in 课 and 颗.

Stroke Order

稞 kē