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螟

míng
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 snout moth's larva
  2. 2 stem borer (a major rice and crop pest)

Examples

HSK 7-9
螟虫是稻田里的主要害虫。
Míng chóng shì dàotián lǐ de zhǔyào hàichóng.
Stem borers are a major pest in rice paddies.
HSK 7-9
农民打农药来防治螟害。
Nóngmín dǎ nóngyào lái fángzhì míng hài.
Farmers spray pesticide to control stem borer damage.

Tips

usage
螟 names the caterpillar that bores into rice and other crop stems. The everyday word is 螟虫 míngchóng. A separate compound 螟蛉 mínglíng (a small green caterpillar) became a classical metaphor for an adopted son.

Components

radical
虫 chóng
insect; worm
The insect radical 虫 marks 螟 as a bug, grouping it with other pest and creature words like 蚊 mosquito and 蝗 locust.
phonetic
冥 míng
dark; hidden (here phonetic)
Right is 冥, giving the sound míng. Its sense 'dark, hidden' suits a larva that lives unseen inside a plant stem - a faint semantic bonus.

Stroke Order

螟 míng