Top grass radical — the 3-stroke compressed form of
艸. The indexing radical, anchors
莜 in the botanical family of
麦 wheat,
草 grass,
苗 seedling. Marks
莜 as a plant — specifically
莜麦 naked oats (Avena nuda), a hardy cereal long grown in north Chinese highlands and central to Shanxi cuisine (
莜面 oat noodles).