What 蟖 means
蟖 names a caterpillar, chiefly in the classical compound 蛅蟖.
The classical Chinese dictionary Erya lists 蛅蟖 among its insect entries. Later commentaries describe it as a short, hairy caterpillar with poisonous bristles that sting. Chinese references tie 蟖 to that compound; Japanese entries gloss it as a moth larva or grasshopper, while Korean entries describe a hairy poisonous caterpillar. The glosses vary by dictionary tradition.
Is 蟖 the same as 蟴?
蟴 is a documented variant tied to the same insect name.
Variant dictionaries link 蟴 to 蟖 in the same insect-name tradition. 蟖 lays the shared parts side by side; 蟴 stacks them. Both are listed with Mandarin Pinyin sī. This is a written-form distinction, not a different insect reference.
How do I type 蟖?
Use Mandarin Pinyin sī or the Cangjie code LITCL.
Mandarin Pinyin writes Mandarin sounds with Latin letters; a Pinyin input method uses sī as the candidate key for this reading. Cangjie is a shape-based Chinese input method, and LITCL is its recorded code for 蟖.
Rare and classical; it reads like a dictionary insect name, not everyday vocabulary.
If someone sends it alone, ask what they mean; the rare insect term gives little conversational context.
Don't confuse it with
1Questions people ask
1Why does 蟖 look different in another font?
Yes. Han fonts can draw the same character in different styles. Taiwan's CNS11643 catalogue shows Kai (regular script), Hei (sans serif), and Song (serif) forms; default Windows fonts include 蟖 in Windows 10+.
How to type 蟖
蟖\87D6Codes and encoding1 code points
A visible symbol can contain several code points. JS .length counts UTF-16 units; UTF-8 counts bytes.