冤

寃

yuān

兔 + 冖

HSK 3.0Level 7

Definitions

yuān (noun) injustice; grievance; wrong

Etymology

About

冤 (yuān) is an ideogram combining the semantic radical 冖 (mì), a cover or confined space, with 兔 (tù), rabbit. The image depicts a rabbit trapped under a cover, physically constrained against its will. This metaphor of a helpless, trapped animal extends to abstract concepts like suffering injustice, false accusation, or wrongful grievance, capturing the helplessness and unfairness of being wronged.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Seal Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

你别冤枉我。

Nǐ bié yuānwǎng wǒ.

Don't wrong me.

他感到非常冤屈。

Tā gǎndào fēichāng yuānqū.

He feels very wronged.

这是一个冤案。

Zhè shì yī gè yuān'àn.

This is a wrongful case.

他被冤枉偷了钱。

Tā bèi yuānwǎng tōu le qián.

He was wrongfully accused of stealing money.

这个判决有点冤。

Zhège pànjué yǒudiǎn yuān.

This judgment is a bit unjust.

她为自己申冤。

Tā wèi zìjǐ shēnyuān.

She pleads for justice for herself.

历史上有许多冤死的人。

Lìshǐ shàng yǒu xǔduō yuānsǐ de rén.

In history, there are many people who were wrongfully killed.

即使证据不足，他也不想冤屈任何人。

Jíshǐ zhèngjù bùzú, tā yě bù xiǎng yuānqū rènhé rén.

Even though the evidence is insufficient, he doesn't want to wrong anyone.

Related Characters

Component: 兔

Component: 冖

冤