Definitions
(literary) to cover; to shelter; (literary) 76 years (unit of time in ancient calendars)
Etymology
About
The character "蔀" is structured with the grass radical (艹) positioned above the phonetic component "部", reflecting its early association with vegetative materials. Etymologically, it originally referred to a thatch cover or shelter, a concrete meaning that gradually extended to abstract concepts of obscurity and division. In historical usage, "蔀" described physical objects like thatched huts and was later adopted in astronomical terminology to denote cyclical periods or celestial canopies, demonstrating a shift from tangible references to more conceptual applications.