蠊 (lián): (in 蜚蠊) cockroach

Meanings

蜚蠊是蟑螂的学名。

Fěilián shì zhāngláng de xuémíng.

"Blatta" is the scientific name for the cockroach.

蜚蠊属于昆虫中的一类。

Fěilián shǔyú kūnchóng zhōng de yílèi.

The cockroach belongs to the order Blattodea among insects.

usage

蠊 is a bound character: it only appears in the formal/scientific term 蜚蠊 (cockroach). Everyday speech uses 蟑螂 instead.

radical

虫 chóng

insect; worm

The insect radical 虫 on the left marks this as a bug, the same marker found across insect names like 蟑螂 and 蜘蛛.

phonetic

廉 lián

honest; cheap (here phonetic)

On the right 廉 (honest, inexpensive) supplies the sound lián exactly, with no tone drift. It contributes only the pronunciation here.

蠊 lián