莽 mǎng thicket
thicket; underbrush
怎么记住“莽”: 艹 grass + 犬 dog + 廾 two hands = thicket. The tall grass swallows the dog as it chases a rabbit, and the boy pulls it out with two hands from the thick thicket.
部件结构
形声 · Meaning + sound
One part gives the meaning, the other gives the sound.
莽 = 艹 grass + 𬌪 dog in grass
- 艹 grass
- 𬌪 dog in grass
- 犬 dog
- 廾 two hands
The tall grass swallows the dog as it chases a rabbit, and the boy pulls it out with two hands from the thick thicket.
How it came to be
The small seal form shows a dog among grasses, and the grasses also give the sound.
用法
- Two senses. Wild overgrown grass: 草莽 (cǎomǎng) the wilds / (figuratively) outlaws and commoners outside officialdom.
- And rash/reckless: 鲁莽 (lǔmǎng) hot-headed and careless, 莽撞 (mǎngzhuàng) impetuous. Contrast 勇敢 (yǒnggǎn) brave: 莽 is courage without thought, a fault.