忘

wàng

亡 + 心

HSK 3.0Level 2

Definitions

wàng (verb) to forget

wàng (verb) to neglect; to overlook

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 心 represents the meaning and 亡 represents the sound.

Semantic: 心 Phonetic: 亡

About

The character 忘 is a phono-semantic compound for 'to forget' or 'slip from memory.' It combines the upper component 亡 (to lose, perish) with the lower component 心 (heart/mind). 亡 provides the sound and also evokes disappearance, while 心 indicates a mental process. Together they express the notion of something vanishing from the heart or mind, that is, forgetting or neglecting.

Etymology Hide

Bronze etymology image

Bronze Late Spring and Autumn (~500 BC)

Seal etymology image

Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal etymology image

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我忘记带书了。

Wo wangji dai shu le.

I forgot to bring the book.

他忘了我的名字。

Ta wangle wo de mingzi.

He forgot my name.

请不要忘记关门。

Qing buyao wangji guan men.

Please do not forget to close the door.

我忘不了那件事。

Wo wang buliao na jian shi.

I cannot forget that matter.

她忘记了自己的生日。

Ta wangjile ziji de shengri.

She forgot her own birthday.

我们不应该忘记历史。

Women bu yinggai wangji lishi.

We should not forget history.

他沉浸在快乐中，忘了时间。

Ta chenjin zai kuaile zhong, wangle shijian.

He was immersed in happiness and forgot the time.

即使面对困难，我们也不能忘记初心。

Jishi miandui kunnan, women ye buneng wangji chuxin.

Even when facing difficulties, we must not forget our original intention.

Related Characters

Component: 亡

Component: 心

Example Words