About
The character 咽, which represents both the throat (yān) and the act of swallowing (yàn), derives its structure from the semantic component 口 (mouth) combined with the phonetic component 因, which historically provided a close approximation of its sound and also carried a connotation of "to depend on" or "cause", reflecting the throat's essential role. Its core meaning has consistently been associated with the throat and the passage of substances through it, but this physical function naturally extended into the metaphorical realm to describe the suppression of emotions, giving rise to the reading yè, as in 哽咽, which depicts a voice choked with feeling. Over time, the character’s application stabilized around these interconnected ideas, maintaining its primary physical denotations while its emotional usage became a fixed linguistic expression for stifled sorrow.
Example Sentences Hide
我的咽喉有点痛。
他咽下了苦药。
吞咽食物要小心。
她哽咽着说不出话。
孩子慢慢咽下糖果。
医生检查了他的咽喉。
他忍着疼痛咽下了食物。
呜咽声在夜晚的风中飘散。