蚌 (bàng) is a Chinese character meaning “freshwater mussel”. It is written from 虫 (insect; bug; worm) and 丰 (abundant; lush growth), side by side, and takes 10 strokes. It has a second reading, bèng, which turns up in 蚌埠 — here the two readings are two separate things to learn, not one card with two answers.
Build the character for “mussel”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
虫 + 丰
Left–right structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分，以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：10 画 = 虫 6 画 + 丰 4 画；部首取康熙 142 虫部；说文解字：蚌，蜃屬。从虫丰聲。声符档位只依据实测现代读音（丰 fēng / 蚌 bàng 声母韵母均不同）
Memory aid
A small creature (虫) next to 丰, "abundant". Picture a river mussel growing plump and abundant on the riverbed — that is 蚌.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 河蚌hé bàngfreshwater mussel蚌 = bàng
- 蚌壳bàng kémussel shell; clam shell蚌 = bàng
Go deeper
All readings
mussel; clam
freshwater mussel; clam; bivalve mollusc
生活在淡水中的一种软体动物，有两扇贝壳，有的能产珍珠。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 河蚌hé bàngfreshwater mussel蚌 = bàng
- 蚌壳bàng kémussel shell; clam shell蚌 = bàng
used in the place name Bengbu
used in 蚌埠 Bengbu, a city in Anhui province
用于地名「蚌埠」，安徽省的一个城市。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 蚌埠bèng bùBengbu (city in Anhui province)蚌 = bèng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 蚌 mean?
蚌 (bàng) means freshwater mussel; clam; bivalve mollusc.
How do you pronounce 蚌?
Its main reading is bàng. It also has a second reading, bèng, which only shows up in certain words such as 蚌埠 — so the word tells you the reading, not the character on its own.
Why is 蚌 sometimes pronounced bèng?
Because it is a multi-reading character: each reading carries a different sense, and the word decides which one applies. In 蚌埠 it is read bèng.
What parts is 蚌 made of?
虫 (insect; bug; worm) and 丰 (abundant; lush growth), side by side. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分，以 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：10 画 = 虫 6 画 + 丰 4 画；部首取康熙 142 虫部；说文解字：蚌，蜃屬。从虫丰聲。声符档位只依据实测现代读音（丰 fēng / 蚌 bàng 声母韵母均不同）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 蚌 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 蚌?
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 蚌?
Common ones are 河蚌 and 蚌壳. The reading of 蚌 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.