啃

kěn
口 + 肯
HSK 2.0Level 6
HSK 3.0Level 7

Definitions

kěn (verb) to gnaw; to nibble; to bite

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 口 represents the meaning and 肯 represents the sound.

Semantic: 口 Phonetic: 肯

About

啃 is a phonosemantic compound combining the meaning component 口 (kǒu, mouth) and the sound component 肯 (kěn). The mouth radical on the left clearly marks it as an action involving the mouth, while the phonetic 肯 provides the exact pronunciation and adds no semantic meaning. It denotes the physical act of gnawing, biting, or chewing on something hard, such as a bone or an ear of corn, and is commonly used figuratively for wrestling with a thorny problem or for intently digesting complex, dense material.

Example Sentences Hide

他在啃苹果。

Tā zài kěn píngguǒ.

He is biting into an apple.

弟弟正在啃一块大排骨。

Dìdi zhèngzài kěn yí kuài dà páigǔ.

My younger brother is gnawing on a big pork rib.

小猫喜欢啃我的手指。

Xiǎo māo xǐhuan kěn wǒ de shǒuzhǐ.

The kitten likes to nibble on my fingers.

考试前，他通宵啃书本。

Kǎoshì qián, tā tōngxiāo kěn shūběn.

Before the exam, he stayed up all night cramming from his books.

这块骨头太硬了，狗都啃不动。

Zhè kuài gǔtou tài yìng le, gǒu dōu kěn bù dòng.

This bone is too hard; even the dog can't gnaw through it.

年轻人不应一味啃老，要自立。

Niánqīng rén bù yīng yíwèi kěnlǎo, yào zìlì.

Young people shouldn't just rely on their parents; they should be self-reliant.

他靠啃老本过日子，从不寻求突破。

Tā kào kěn lǎoběn guò rìzi, cóng bù xúnqiú tūpò.

He lives off his past achievements and never seeks to make a breakthrough.

面对这个技术难题，团队啃了三个月才攻克。

Miànduì zhège jìshù nántí, tuánduì kěn le sān gè yuè cái gōngkè.

Faced with this technical challenge, the team worked hard on it for three months before finally overcoming it.

Related Characters

Component: 口

中 和 可 后 如 同 只 知 高 问 向 或 加 合

Component: 肯

掯

Example Words

啃书 啃老 啃老族