萧

蕭

xiāo

adjective #15,878

Meanings

1 desolate
2 dreary
3 Chinese mugwort

Characters

萧

xiāo

desolate; dreary

Examples

HSK 5

秋天的街道显得十分萧条。

Qiūtiān de jiēdào xiǎnde shífēn xiāotiáo.

The autumn streets look very desolate.

Tips

usage

Most commonly seen in the compound 萧条 (bleak/desolate). As a standalone character it is literary and rarely used in everyday speech.

history

Also a common Chinese surname (Xiāo). The Xiao family produced two emperors of the Liang dynasty during the Southern Dynasties period.

Components

radical

艹 cǎo

grass; plant

艹 is the top grass radical (variant of 艸). 萧 originally named a kind of mugwort or artemisia, so the grass radical fits literally. The plant sense survives in classical 萧艾 (mugwort and wormwood), but today 萧 mostly carries borrowed senses: desolate, bleak, or as a surname.

phonetic

肃 sù

solemn; respectful

肃 supplies the sound, drifted to xiāo. There's a strong echo of meaning too - both 肃 and 萧 carry a quiet, austere mood, which is how 萧 came to mean desolate (萧瑟, 萧条). Same phonetic also drives 啸 (whistle). The simplified 肃 reduces traditional 肅.

Stroke Order

萧 xiāo

萧