穀

Grain or cereal as a general category (typically staple crops such as millet and rice), often viewed as resources, commodities, or the basis of taxation and survival. By extension, denotes prosperity or wealth resulting from an abundance of grain.

Functions almost exclusively as a noun; may serve as a head noun or as a modifier in compounds.

Distinguish 穀 (the general category/commodity) from specific grains such as 粟 (foxtail millet) or 米 (rice). Regarding the gloss "lucky," this is not used as a standard adjective for luck (吉), but rather refers to prosperity, wealth, or official emoluments (related phonetically to 祿).

Simplified variant: U+8C37; semantic variant: U+7CD3. In classical texts, 谷 frequently appears as a shorthand or simplified variant for 穀.

The presence of the 禾 (grain) radical typically confirms the agricultural sense.

When encountering the glyph 谷, use surrounding context—specifically terms related to agriculture, taxation, or food—to determine if it is intended as shorthand for "grain" (穀) rather than its primary topographical meaning of "valley."