艹 Gardening

cài

Cai
艹 + 祭
flowers + offer sacrifice

Ms. Cai takes flowers to offer sacrifice to her ancestors.

*fairy house
艹 + 合
flowers + fit

Flowers fit together into a fairy house.

qín

celery
艹 + 斤jīn
flowers + axe

You find wild celery flowering near your shelter. You harvest it with your axe. (Hunter-Gatherer)

K

yíng

*rooftop garden
艹 + 宀
flowers + house

A rooftop garden is where flowers grow on top of a house.

cǎo

grass
艹 + 早zǎo
flowers + early

You should cut grass early before flowers grow.

Cut the grass early in the morning.

zàng

inter [v.]
艹 + 死 + 廾
flowers + death + two hands

You inter with flowers on top of death, two hands folded on the chest.

xīn

fuel
艹 + 新xīn
flowers + new

Flowers: a new source of renewable fuel.

xiāo

desolate
艹 + 肃
flowers + solemn

As Mr. Xiao looked at the solemn flowers around him at the funeral, he felt desolate.

ruò

as if
艹 + 右yòu
flowers + right

We can put flowers on the right to cover that up, as if they were meant to be there.

táo

grapes (B)
艹 + 匋táo
flowers + lidded clay pot

Pu and Tao are sitting under the flowering arbor where grapes are bound up in clusters. Pu uses a needle to inject the juice intravenously and Tao drinks the juice from a lidded clay pot.

cǎo

*flowers

derivative: 1 *bouquet

as a component: “草字头”

spinach
艹 + 波bō
flowers + waves

You get sea-sick from the waves and throw up your spinach flowers.

bitter
艹 + 古gǔ
flowers + ancient

Flowers get bitter as they get ancient.

mushroom (cap)
艹 + 磨mó
flowers + grind

The caps of the mushrooms are the flowers. Grind them into a paste.

máo

thatch
艹 + 矛máo
flowers + spear

When a spear warps or otherwise becomes useless as a tool, it can be repurposed as a support for a thatch hut. Can you picture it propping up a canopy of flowers?

xuē

Xue
艹 + 丶 + 㠯 + 辛xīn
flowers + drop + boss + peppery

Little Miss Xue has cultivated a special type of flower inspired by memories of a previous boss. She uses a peppery fertilizer.

máng

mango
艹 + 亡wáng
flowers + deceased

I would gladly submit to death by mango.

suàn

garlic
艹 + 示 + 示
flowers + altar + altar

Offer flowers on the altar to the garlic god, twice (at the beginning of the season and at the end).

mào

lush
艹 + 戊
flowers + cannon

Picture finding a cannon half-buried in the jungle, now lush with flowers.

revive
艹 + 办
flowers + manage

Picture reviving your manager with the smell of flowers.

fruit stem
艹 + 帝dì
flowers + sovereign

If you picture this royal family on a family tree, the sovereign is the stem, and the children are the flowering branches.

mǎn

full
氵 + 艹 + 两
water + flowers + two of/yoke

Water the two flowers until the pots are full.

yìn

shady
艹 + 阴yīn
flowers + Yin

These flowers only bloom in the shade or at night.

shǔ

potato
艹 + 罒 + 者
flowers + net + hero

The hero’s patented potato net: the net is buried underneath the flowering plant to catch the potatoes.

fēn

essence
艹 + 分fēn
flowers + part

From which part of the flower do you extract the essence?

shū

vegetables
艹 + 疏shū
flowers + sparse

Flowers on vegetables are sparse.

Because food is sparse along the trail of the Spartan Race, vegetables have been planted along the way. (Max Dart)

yīng

England
艹 + 央yāng
flowers + center

Princess Di: English rose.

In England, flowers are the center of the aesthetic: look at the flag.

zhēng

steam [v.]
艹 + 承chéng + 灬
flowers + (partial) undertake + cooking fire

Alternatively: 艹 + 了 + 水 + 一 + 灬 flowers + completed + water + one + cooking fire; Flowers of steam rise as the water in the one pot is being dri-ed up (completed) over the cooking fire.

zhù

author [v.]
艹 + 者zhě
flowers + hero

The hero is honored as an author with a floral wreath. (The Hero of the Wild West)

technique
艹 + 乙yǐ
flowers + fishing

one technique is to use flowers when fishing for a girl’s attention OR different brush stroke techniques using flowers and fishhooks

fàn

model
艹 + 氵 + 㔾
flowers + water + worm

Picture a model for a new craft: pressed flowers and worms in wet clay.

cáng

hide
艹 + 爿pán + 戊 + 臣
flowers + slat + cannon + loft bed

Picture a hidden enemy: in the flowers, behind slats, behind the cannon, or hiding from his fear in the loft bed in the barracks.

miè

despise
艹 + 罒 + 戊 + 丶
flowers + net + cannon + drop

Flower children despise war. Picture them throwing a net over a cannon or stuffing it with something to prevent it from firing.

luó

edible root
艹 + 罗luó
flowers + silk gauze

Use silk gauze on the flowers of the edible root plant, so they don’t get eaten.

chrysanthemum
艹 + 匊jū
flowers + bound up + rice

Picture binding up chrysanthemum flowers like rice in a potpourri bag.

*Samoa
艹 + 阝 + 产
flowers + pinnacle + products

Noni flower fruit juice is the pinnacle of Samoan products (this character is used for transliterations of foreign words starting with the "s" sound).

jiǎng

Jiang
艹 + 将jiàng
flowers + General

Little Miss Jiang was given flowers by the General.

huò

seize
艹 + 犭 + 犬
flowers + Aesop + small dog

Flowers Seized from the Small Dog”  Pekingese was fulfilling her dreams one by one. After she was released from prison, and her podcast had gone viral, she was now receiving speaking engagement invitations regularly. She should have been happy, but she had a recurring nightmare. She often dreamed that just as her speech had ended, as the audience was applauding and she was being presented with flowers, they were seized from her paws, and the cheers turned to boos as Pekingese slunk off the stage. Moral: Seize the day because the night might seize you.

mushroom (stem)
艹 + 姑gū
flowers + father’s sister

Your aunt is infamous for her mushroom stem stir-fry.

lián

lotus
艹 + 连lián
flowers + one after another

Picture a parade of lotus flowers floating one after another.

huāng

wasteland
艹 + 亡 + 川
flowers + deceased + stream

When flowers die and streams dry up, you have a wasteland.

grapes (A)
艹 + 勹 + 甫fǔ
flowers + bound up + injection

Pu and Tao are sitting under the flowering arbor where grapes are bound up in clusters. Pu uses a needle to inject the juice intravenously and Tao drinks the juice from a clay pot.

luò

fall [v.]
艹 + 洛luò
flowers + L.A.

alternatively: 艹+氵+各 flowers + water + each, Mist each one of the flowers, so that water doesn't fall out the bottom.

sprout
艹 + 牙yá
flowers + tooth

In one culture, baby teeth are buried, and the sprouts that come up above them represent new adult teeth.

cōng

onion
艹 + 匆cōng + 心
flowers + hurriedly + heart

Benjamin Bunny tramples among the flowers and tries to hurriedly take the onions, with an anxious heart.

máng

boundless
艹 + 氵 + 亡wáng
flowers + water + deceased

Arlington cemetery: boundless flowers, water, deceased

qié

eggplant
艹 + 加
flowers + add

加油,because the eggplant soaks up so much.

cāng

ash-colored
艹 + 仓cāng
flowers + storehouse

Fresh flowers in a storehouse will eventually fade to ash-colored.

slight [adj]
艹 + 氵 + 尃
flowers + water + thumb prick

Slight Sarah (or a thin gardener you know) hooked up her flowers up to a thumb prick watering system.

ài

Chinese mugwort
艹 + 乂
flowers + sheaf

Picture Chinese mugwort gathered in a sheaf with its flowers on top.

mán

deceive
目 + 艹 + 两
eye + flowers + yoke

Deceive them by yoking their eyes with flowers.

jiàn

recommend
艹 + 存
flowers + deposit

You recommend that the old flowers be deposited in the compost.

guàn

stork
艹 + 吅 + 隹
flowers + chatterbox + special bird

Picture a stork with flowers on her head happily chatting to the turkey about last night’s delivery.

dàng

licentious
艹 + 汤tāng
flowers + soup

Picture a love potion flower soup.

yùn

amass
艹 + 缊yūn
flowers + [no meaning]

Alternatively: 艹 + 纟 + 日 + 皿, flowers + thread + sun + dish

A kid amasses a collection of flowers, thread in dishes all out under the sun.

save up
艹 + 畜chù
flowers + livestock

Mahana grew flowers while Johnny Lingo saved up livestock.

mǎng

rude
艹 + 犬 + 廾
flowers + small dog + two hands

Picture using two hands to restrain a rude small dog trying to trample the flowers.

fēi

humble
艹 + 非fēi
flowers + jail

Picture a humble earthen jail with flowers growing on top.

shield [v]
艹 + 敝bì
flowers + shredder

Flowers shield The Shredder from his fan's anger.

méng

germinate
艹 + 明míng
flowers + bright

Flower buds germinate in the bright light of spring.

gǒu

careless
艹 + 句
flowers + sentence

Don’t get careless with flowery sentences or you’ll end up looking less intelligent.

exacting
艹 + 可kě
flowers + can

Flowers can be arranged according to an exacting pattern.

lěi

new bud
艹 + 雷léi
flowers + thunder

Picture new buds opening into flowers every time the thunder claps.

bodhisattva
艹 + 咅pǒu
flowers + comedian

Picture flowers on the head of Kung Fu Panda as he poses as bodhisattva.

fāng

aromatic
艹 + 方fāng
flowers + direction/compass

The aroma from different flowers draws you in different directions in a garden.

jiǎn

cocoon
艹 + 虫
flowers + insect

Flowers cover the insect’s cocoon.

màn

creeping vine
艹 + 曼màn
flowers + drawn out/mandala

Picture a creeping vine growing out and flowering in all directions from the center like a mandala.

jùn

fungus
艹 + 囗 + 禾
flowers + enclose + grain

Flowers or fungus grow on enclosed grain.

wěi

wilt
艹 + 委wěi
flowers + committee

Picture a committee waiting so long that their flowers wilt.

lái

lambsquarters
艹 + 来lái
flowers + come

As a weed, lambsquarters keeps coming and coming, but it is actually cultivated for food by North American indigenous populations.

Holland
艹 + 何hé
flowers + whatwhichwhowherewhy?

Trivia question: Holland is known for whatwhich kind of flowers?

kudzu
艹 + 曷hé
flowers + siesta

Kudzu is fast growing, so don't take a siesta or it might kill your flowers.

reeds
艹 + 户hù
flowers + door

Picture a door made of reeds and decorated with flowers.

wèi

luxuriant
艹 + 尉wèi
flowers + martyr

Picture luxuriant flowers placed on a martyr’s grave.

téng

rattan
艹 + 月 + 龹 + 氺
flowers + body part + quarter + snowflake

zhī

sesame
艹 + 之zhī
flowers + road block

zǎo

algae
艹 + 澡zǎo
flowers + bath

Flowers (algae) form in the bath if you don’t drain the water.

líng

water caltrop
艹 + 夌líng
flowers + mole

Picture a mole harvesting ling nuts from water caltrop flowers.

jīng

plant stem
艹 + Bjīng
flowers + crane

péng

disheveled
艹 + 逢féng
flowers + chance upon

Rapunzel’s hair is disheveled with flowers when she is chanced upon by the prince.

kuí

large-flowered plants
艹 + 癶 + 天
flowers + thatched roof + heavens

Picture large-flowered plants on thatched roofs blooming towards the heavens.

cattail
艹 + 浦pǔ
flowers + river mouth

What feels like fuzzy cattails are really the plant's flowers. They grow at the river mouth.

in disorder
艹 + 耒 + 昔xī
flowers + Christmas tree + times past

In my mind, the seasons are in disorder in New Zealand with flowering Christmas trees but traditions clinging to times past in the British Isles.

hibiscus
艹 + 夫fū
flowers + husband

The flowers from my husband were hibiscus.

róng

cottonrose hibiscus
艹 + 容róng
flowers + contain

The category of flowers called hibiscus contain the cottonrose hibiscus.

jasmine
艹 + 利lì
flowers + profit

Jasmine is a profitable flower because it is used in perfume and rituals.

chuí

droop
千 + 艹 + 士
thousand + flowers + soldier

A thousand flowers droop to honor a fallen soldier.

miáo

seedling
艹 + 田
flowers + field

Flowers in the field indicate the seedlings are growing.

nobody, *mirage
艹 + 日 + 大
flowers + sun + large dog

This is a hippie mirage of sun dog wearing flowers named Morgan.

jié

holiday
艹 + 卩jié
flowers + stamped

Flowers decorate a stamped invitation to a holiday party.

lán

blue
艹 + 监jiān
flowers + supervise

The food dish he is supervising has blue flowers on it.

dǒng

director
艹 + 重zhòng
flowers + heavy

A funeral director arranges flowers for heavy hearts.

chá

tea
艹 + 𠆢 + 朩
flowers + umbrella + pole

Picture workers wearing umbrella hats, a pole on their shoulders, harvesting flower tea.

píng

apple
艹 + 平píng
flowers + even

An apple a day keeps you even.

cài

vegetable
艹 + 采cǎi
flowers + pick

You pick off the flowers when you eat the vegetable.

jiāo

banana
艹 + 焦jiāo
flowers + roast bird

Stuff your turkey with banana flowers and roast it.

Rub banana on your turkey at the end to get a golden roast.

huáng

yellow
艹 + P
flowers + chia pet

Chia pet flowers are yellow.

yào

medicine
艹 + 约yuē
flowers + make an appointment

These flowers are grown for medicine. I had to make an appointment with an herbalist to get them.

alternatively: 艹 + 纟 + 勺 flowers + thread + ladle, traditional medicine made from flowers, tied up with thread, boil it and ladle out the soup

huā

flower [n.]
艹 + 化huà
flowers + transform

Flowers can transform a relationship.

kuān

wide
宀 + 艹 + 见
house + flowers + see

WIDE LOAD on the back of a glass house, where you can see the flowers inside.

艹 Gardening

Quiz

màn

creeping vine

chrysanthemum

lái

lambsquarters

líng

water caltrop

cāng

ash-colored

kuí

large-flowered plants

róng

cottonrose hibiscus

mushroom (cap)

mushroom (stem)

Show Answers