Definitions

wān to scoop out; to gouge out

Etymology phono-semantic

knife

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

is a verb meaning to cut or scoop out material with a sharp instrument. It is a phono-semantic compound: the right radical (the knife radical ) signals the semantic field of cutting, while the left component provides the pronunciation wān. The character appears in medical contexts for removing necrotic tissue, in cooking for hollowing out vegetables and fruits, and in the idiom 剜肉补疮 (wān ròu bǔ chuāng), literally "cutting flesh to mend a sore", a metaphor for a disastrously harmful quick fix.

Etymology Hide

Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern