蚯 (qiū) is a Chinese character meaning “earthworm”. It is written from 虫 (insect; bug; worm) and 丘 (hill; mound), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “earthworm”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
虫 + 丘
Left–right structure
Structure from: 广韵·下平声尤韵去鸠切（与丘同小韵）: 蚯，蚯蚓；现代字形 ⿰虫丘 对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画 0–5=虫、6–10=丘
Memory aid
A little crawling creature (虫) that tunnels through a hill (丘) of soil — the earthworm.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 蚯蚓qiū yǐnearthworm蚯 = qiū
Go deeper
All readings
earthworm (in 蚯蚓)
earthworm; used in the word 蚯蚓 qiūyǐn
见「蚯蚓」，一种生活在土壤里的环节动物。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 蚯蚓qiū yǐnearthworm蚯 = qiū
Sound component
丘 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 蚯 mean?
蚯 (qiū) means earthworm; used in the word 蚯蚓 qiūyǐn.
How do you pronounce 蚯?
It is pronounced qiū.
What parts is 蚯 made of?
虫 (insect; bug; worm) and 丘 (hill; mound), side by side. The recorded source is: 广韵·下平声尤韵去鸠切（与丘同小韵）: 蚯，蚯蚓；现代字形 ⿰虫丘 对照 hanzi-writer-data 笔画 0–5=虫、6–10=丘. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 蚯 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 蚯?
虫. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 蚯?
Common ones are 蚯蚓. The reading of 蚯 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.