苇 (wěi): reed

Measure Word

一根芦苇 gēn

Meanings

1 reed
2 rush
3 Phragmites communis (common reed plant)

Characters

苇

wěi

reed; rush

Examples

HSK 7-9

湖边的芦苇随风摇曳。

Húbiān de lúwěi suí fēng yáoyè.

The reeds by the lake swayed in the wind.

HSK 7-9

芦苇荡里有很多水鸟筑巢。

Lúwěi dàng lǐ yǒu hěnduō shuǐniǎo zhúcháo.

Many water birds nest in the reed marshes.

Tips

usage

苇 usually appears in 芦苇 (common reed). Alone, 苇 is a bound form. The reed plant is common in Chinese wetlands and poetry, symbolizing resilience in the wind.

Components

radical

艹 cǎo

grass; plant (top radical)

Top three-stroke grass radical - the indexing radical. Marks 苇 as a plant: specifically a reed, the tall grass that grows in shallow water at lake edges. Anchors it in the botanical family with 草, 花, 茎.

phonetic

韦 wéi

soft leather; tanned hide

Bottom 韦 supplies the sound - wéi shifted slightly to wěi. Same phonetic appears in 围 (enclose), 伟 (great), 违 (disobey). The 'leather' meaning is unused here; 韦 is pure phonetic duty. The classical phrase 韦编三绝 (the leather bindings broke three times) hints at why this phonetic was reachable - both reeds and leather were everyday materials.