嗫

囁
niè
口 + 聂

Definitions

niè move the mouth as in speaking

Etymology phono-semantic

mouth

Semantic: 口 Phonetic: 聂

About

A phono-semantic compound, 嗫 combines the mouth radical 口 on the left, signaling a speech-related action, with the phonetic component 聂 on the right. Its traditional form 囁 uses the unsimplified phonetic 聶, a stack of three 耳 (ear) characters. The character means to whisper or murmur hesitantly, often from a lack of confidence to speak aloud. It is almost always found in the compound 嗫嚅, which evokes the faltering, indistinct sound and appearance of tentative speech.

Example Sentences Hide

他嗫嚅地说不出话。

Tā nièrú de shuō bù chū huà.

He mumbled and couldn't speak.

她嗫嚅着回答老师的问题。

Tā nièrú zhe huídá lǎoshī de wèntí.

She mumbled in response to the teacher's question.

小孩嗫嚅地向妈妈道歉。

Xiǎohái nièrú xiàng māma dàoqiàn.

The child mumbled an apology to his mother.

他因为紧张而嗫嚅不语。

Tā yīnwèi jǐnzhāng ér nièrú bù yǔ.

He remained silent and mumbled due to nervousness.

在众人面前，他嗫嚅了许久才开口。

Zài zhòngrén miànqián, tā nièrú le xǔjiǔ cái kāikǒu.

In front of everyone, he mumbled for a long time before speaking.

尽管他嗫嚅着解释，但没有人相信他。

Jǐnguǎn tā nièrú zhe jiěshì, dàn méiyǒu rén xiāngxìn tā.

Although he mumbled an explanation, no one believed him.

她的声音嗫嚅，几乎听不清楚。

Tā de shēngyīn nièrú, jīhū tīng bù qīngchu.

Her voice was mumbling, almost inaudible.

每当他想起那件事，就会嗫嚅着说不出完整的句子。

Měi dāng tā xiǎng qǐ nà jiàn shì, jiù huì nièrú zhe shuō bù chū wánzhěng de jùzi.

Whenever he remembers that incident, he mumbles and can't speak a complete sentence.

Related Characters

Component: 口

中 和 可 后 如 同 只 知 高 问 向 或 加 合

Component: 聂

摄 慑 蹑 颞 镊 滠

Example Words

嗫嚅