Chinese character 皣

It describes a plant’s white blossoms. The Shuowen Jiezi, an early Chinese dictionary, analyzes 皣 as 華 (“flower”) plus 白 (“white”) and defines the plant-white-flower appearance. The entry names the pale bloom itself.

Later Chinese dictionaries keep the flower sense, add 明 (“bright”), and record 皣 as an old equivalent of 曄. Historical citations also show 皣 beside forms written 曄 or 晔; doubled as 皣皣, it strengthens the description.

A sentence tells you whether 皣 describes a white flower or brightness. Alone, it has no sentence context, so the dictionary senses cannot settle which one the writer intended.

Is 皣 the same as 曄 or 𤾴?

They are dictionary-linked, but the records describe different relations. Chinese dictionaries list 𤾴 as a variant form associated with 皣 and record 皣 as an old equivalent of 曄. Later citations also place 皣 beside 晔. These are documented lexical or citation links, not guesses based on appearance. Preserve 皣 when transcribing a source that prints it.

Why does 皣 show as a box?

A box usually means the selected font lacks a drawing for 皣. A system may show a tofu box, a question-mark box, a fallback code-point marker, or blank space instead. A font that contains the glyph is needed to display its intended shape.