荷花

• Pinyin: hé huā
• Hanzi breakdown: 荷 = 艹 (grass/plant radical) + 何 (phonetic component); 花 = 艹 + 化 (transformation/blooming)

Meaning

Lotus flower. The flowering aquatic plant Nelumbo nucifera, prized for its beauty, fragrance, and cultural symbolism.

One of the most culturally significant flowers in China, symbolising purity, moral integrity, and spiritual enlightenment — it grows in muddy water yet remains unstained. A recurring subject in classical poetry, painting, and Buddhist art. Also valued practically: lotus roots, seeds, and leaves are used in cooking and traditional medicine. The phrase 出淤泥而不染 (emerges from mud unsullied) is the most famous literary tribute to the lotus.

Examples

1. 盛夏时节，公园池塘里的荷花竞相绽放，粉白相间，清香四溢，引来无数游客驻足观赏。 In midsummer, the lotus flowers in the park pond bloom in full competition—pink and white, fragrant and abundant—drawing countless visitors to stop and admire them.
2. 周敦颐在名篇中以荷花自喻，赞美其出淤泥而不染的高洁品格，成为千古传诵的名句。 In a famous essay, Zhou Dunyi likened himself to the lotus, praising its noble character of emerging from the mud yet remaining unstained—a line that has been quoted for centuries.
3. 这幅工笔画以荷花为主题，以细腻的笔触描绘出花瓣上晶莹的露珠和婀娜的茎叶。 This meticulous brush painting takes lotus flowers as its theme, using delicate strokes to depict the crystal-clear dewdrops on the petals and the graceful stems and leaves.

Usage Guide

Context: nature, culture, literature, Buddhism, art

Tone: appreciative

Do Say

• 西湖的荷花每逢七月开得最盛，历来是文人墨客吟诗作画的灵感来源。(The lotus flowers of West Lake bloom most abundantly in July and have long been a source of inspiration for poets and painters.)
• 荷花的文化意象在中国古典诗词中随处可见，象征着洁身自好、不随波逐流的人格理想。(The cultural imagery of the lotus appears throughout classical Chinese poetry, symbolising the ideal of moral purity and refusing to follow the crowd.)

Don't Say

• 荷花 interchangeably with 莲花 in all contexts — while both refer to the lotus, 荷花 often emphasises the whole plant in bloom, while 莲花 is more common in Buddhist and spiritual imagery

Origin & History

荷 (lotus plant; to carry/bear — in other contexts) + 花 (flower; blossom)

Cultural Context

Era: Traditional to present

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal