ZHIZHI 知止 · LEARN CHINESE DAILY
种
kind; type; seed
zhǒng
9 strokes · 禾 (grain radical) + 中 (middle, sound) · HSK 3
种 in traditional Chinese
種 · 种
種 for kind, type, and to sow. 种 is only a surname.
What 种 is made of
禾 + 中 = 种
禾grain; standing cereal hé 中middle / center / China zhōng
Where 种 comes from
种 is grain 禾 with 中 for sound: the seed. Seeds sort the world — rice seed grows rice, wheat seed grows wheat — so 'seed' became 'kind, type'. Read zhòng, it's the verb: to plant.
种 in Chinese culture
这种 this kind, 各种 all kinds, 种类 categories. As zhòng: 种树 plant trees, 种地 farm the land. The proverb 种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆 — plant melons, harvest melons; plant beans, harvest beans — is Chinese for 'you reap what you sow'.
Example
这种 zhè zhǒng — this kind
我喜欢这种茶。
Wǒ xǐhuan zhè zhǒng chá.
I like this kind of tea.
How to remember it
The grain 禾 seed at the center 中 — every KIND grows from its seed.
Tone flips the meaning: zhǒng is the seed/kind, zhòng is to plant it. 种种子 zhòng zhǒngzi — 'plant seeds' — uses both in a row.
Same sound, different tones
Words unlocked by 种
这种 zhè zhǒng
this kind
两种 liǎng zhǒng
two kinds
种瓜 zhòng guā
to plant melons
Related characters
LEARN 种 WITH STROKE-BY-STROKE WRITING → DOWNLOAD ZHIZHI
One character a morning · 455-character HSK library · iOS