药

yào

yàospelled as iao · 4th tone — spelling rules

leaf of the iris

Radical: 艹 Strokes: 9 HSK 2

Structure: Top small, bottom largeFrequency: Common

Same radical

花节草落营英苦菜蒙荣藏薄

Same radical

花节草落营英苦菜蒙荣藏薄荒若荡

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Stroke Order · 9 strokes (click to expand)

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Character Decomposition

药=艹+约

Etymology

plant

Meanings

leaf of the iris

yào

medicine

drug

substance used for a specific purpose (e.g. poisoning, explosion, fermenting)

CL: zhǒng,服 fù,味 wèi

to poison

yào

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Words with 药 387 total

to spray agricultural chemicals打药dǎ yào herbal medicine草药cǎo yào patent medicine · medicine already made up成药chéng yào

Idioms with 药 23 total

lit. to prescribe the right medicine for an illness (idiom); fig. to study a problem to find the right way to solve it · to take appropriate steps对症下药duì zhèng xià yào dogskin plaster, used in TCM for treating contusions, rheumatism etc · quack medicine · sham goods狗皮膏药gǒu pí gāo yao different broth but the same old medicine (idiom); a change in name only · a change in form but not in substance换汤不换药huàn tāng bù huàn yào good medicine tastes bitter (idiom); fig. frank criticism is hard to swallow良药苦口liáng yào kǔ kǒu