犁 (lí) · plow, plough

Measure Word

一把犁 bǎ

Meanings

1 plow
2 plough

Characters

犁

lí

plow

Examples

HSK 6

农民用犁翻地，为播种做准备。

Nóngmín yòng lí fān dì, wèi bōzhǒng zuò zhǔnbèi.

Farmers use a plow to till the soil in preparation for sowing.

HSK 7-9

以前耕田靠牛拉犁，现在都用拖拉机了。

Yǐqián gēngtián kào niú lā lí, xiànzài dōu yòng tuōlājī le.

Fields used to be plowed by oxen; now tractors do the job.

Tips

memory

The character 犁 contains 牛 (cow/ox) at the bottom - a visual reminder that oxen were the traditional power source for pulling a plow.

Components

radical

牛 niú

ox; cow

Bottom 牛 is the ox radical, the indexing component. A plow was the ox-drawn farm tool par excellence in ancient China, so the character literally pictures 'the sharp implement pulled by the ox.' Anchors 犁 in the cattle / agriculture family with 牧 herd, 牲 livestock, 物 thing.

phonetic

利 lì

sharp; profit

Top 利 supplies the sound - lì shifting to lí, regular tone movement. 利 itself is 禾 grain + 刂 knife, picturing a sharp blade cutting grain. That cutting-edge image dovetails neatly with the plow below: a sharp implement driven through soil. Same phonetic family: 梨 pear, 莉 jasmine.