牵牛子

牽牛子

qiānniúzǐ

noun

Meanings

1 morning glory seeds (TCM)
2 Pharbitidis Semen
3 seeds of Ipomoea nil / Pharbitis nil

Characters

Examples

牵牛子是一味传统的中药。

Qiānniúzǐ shì yí wèi chuántǒng de zhōngyào.

Morning glory seed is a traditional Chinese medicine.

牵牛子有泻下、利水的功效。

Qiānniúzǐ yǒu xièxià, lìshuǐ de gōngxiào.

Morning glory seeds have purgative and diuretic effects.

Tips

culture

Classified in the category list as animal-adjacent but 牵牛子 is in fact a plant seed: the dried ripe seeds of morning glory (牵牛花), used in TCM as a drastic purgative (泻下药). Named 牵牛 from a folk story that a farmer once traded an ox (牛) for the medicine.

Stroke Order

牵 qiān

牛 niú

子 zǐ