耕 (gēng): to plow, to till
耕 (gēng) is a Chinese character meaning “to plow.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 耒 (semantic) and 井 (phonetic). It ranks #1833 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 耕 plow. Its radical form 耒 (plow) appears in many related characters such as 耗 (hào, to waste).
Definitions
- to plow
- to till
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 耕 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 耕种 | gēng zhòng | to till |
| 耕耘 | gēng yún | plowing and weeding |
| 耕地 | gēng dì | arable land |
| 耕作 | gēng zuò | farming |
| 耕田 | gēng tián | to cultivate soil |
| 笔耕 | bǐ gēng | to make a living by writing |
| 刀耕火种 | dāo gēng huǒ zhòng | slash and burn (agriculture) |
| 自耕农 | zì gēng nóng | owner peasant |
| 耕者有其田 | gèng zhě yǒu qí tián | "land to the tiller", post-Liberation land reform movement instigated by the CCP |
| 可耕地 | kě gēng dì | arable land |
| 精耕细作 | jīng gēng xì zuò | intensive farming |
| 深耕细作 | shēn gēng xì zuò | deep plowing and careful cultivation |
| 水耕法 | shuǐ gēng fǎ | hydroponics |
| 退耕还林 | tuì gēng huán lín | restoring agricultural land to forest |
| 半自耕农 | bàn zì gēng nóng | semi-tenant peasant |
耕 appears in 35 compound words: 34 as the first character, 37 as the last, and 29 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 耕 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (4)
if it's plowing, ask the laborer (idiom); when managing a matter, consult the appropriate specialist
if it's plowing, ask the laborer (idiom); when managing a matter, consult the appropriate specialist
Example Sentences
这个耕字在古汉语中有不同的含义。
zhè gě gēng zì zài gǔ hàn yǔ zhōng yǒu bù tóng de hán yì .
The character "耕" (gēng) carries different meanings in Classical Chinese.
科技助春耕_光明网
kē jì zhù chūn gēng guāng míng wǎng
Science and technology help spring plowing_Guangming.com
(新春走基层)山西长子:长子鼓书深耕乡土 让非遗融入百姓新春
( xīn chūn zǒu jī céng ) shān xī cháng zǐ : cháng zǐ gǔ shū shēn gēng xiāng tǔ ràng fēi yí róng rù bǎi xìng xīn chūn
(New Year at the grassroots level) Shanxi eldest son: The eldest son drum book deeply cultivates the countryside and integrates intangible cultural heritage into the people's New Year
每日星座运势/牡羊必须勤劳的耕耘 竞争获得财富
měi rì xīng zuò yùn shì mǔ yáng bì xū qín láo de gēng yún jìng zhēng huò dé cái fù
Daily Horoscope/Aries must work diligently to compete for wealth
标普全球永续年鉴优等生出列 中华电深耕 ESG 四度入选
biāo pǔ quán qiú yǒng xù nián jiàn yōu děng shēng chū liè zhōng huá diàn shēn gēng E S G sì dù rù xuǎn
S&P Global Sustainability Yearbook honors students are listed Chunghwa Electric's deep ESG cultivation has been selected for the fourth time
荒地变身水耕农场 吉新文英成功种出日本网纹哈密瓜
huāng dì biàn shēn shuǐ gēng nóng chǎng jí xīn wén yīng chéng gōng zhǒng chū rì běn wǎng wén hā mì guā
Wasteland turned into a hydroponic farm Jixin Wenying successfully planted Japanese reticulated cantaloupe
农夫们在田地里忙碌地耕种。
Nóngfū men zài tiándì lǐ mánglù de gēngzhòng.
Farmers are busy working in the field.
一分耕耘，一分收获。
Yīfēngēngyún, yīfēnshōuhuò.
No pain no gain.
俗话说：一分耕耘、一分收获；可俗话又说：人无横财不富、马无夜草不肥！
Súhuàshuō: yī fēn gēngyún, yī fēn shōuhuò; kě súhuà yòu shuō: rén wú hèngcái bù fù, mǎ wú yè cǎo bù féi!
As the saying goes, "You reap what you sow", and yet another says that luck plays an important role in success too!
Character Family
耒 Radical Family — Characters sharing the plow radical
Related Characters
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 耕 (gēng) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 耕 and 讲?
How many strokes does 耕 have?
What is the radical of 耕?
What are the components of 耕?
What are common words containing 耕?
What characters sound the same as 耕 (gēng)?
Is 耕 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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