捡

撿

jiǎn

佥 + 扌

HSK 2.0Level 5

HSK 3.0Level 5

Definitions

jiǎn (verb) to pick up; to collect; to gather

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 扌 represents the meaning and 佥 represents the sound. Simplified form of 撿.

Semantic: 扌 Phonetic: 佥

About

捡 is a phono-semantic compound character, with the semantic component 扌 on the left and the phonetic component 佥 on the right. 扌, a variant of 手 (hand), indicates that the character's meaning involves manual activity, picking up, gathering, or handling objects. The phonetic 佥 is a simplified replacement for the more complex 僉 (meaning 'all' or 'unanimous') seen in the traditional form 撿. Thus, 捡 primarily means to pick up (from the ground), collect scattered items, or retrieve dropped objects, and it is a common verb used in everyday contexts for such physical actions.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我捡到了一支笔。

Wǒ jiǎn dào le yī zhī bǐ.

I picked up a pen.

她在公园里捡树叶。

Tā zài gōngyuán lǐ jiǎn shùyè.

She picks up leaves in the park.

小朋友捡起地上的玩具。

Xiǎo péngyǒu jiǎn qǐ dì shàng de wánjù.

The child picked up the toy on the ground.

我昨天捡到了一个钱包。

Wǒ zuótiān jiǎn dào le yīgè qiánbāo.

I picked up a wallet yesterday.

捡到东西应该交给警察。

Jiǎn dào dōngxī yīnggāi jiāo gěi jǐngchá.

If you find something, you should hand it over to the police.

他在海边捡了许多漂亮的贝壳。

Tā zài hǎibiān jiǎn le xǔduō piàoliang de bèiké.

He collected many beautiful shells at the beach.

捡垃圾是保护环境的好习惯。

Jiǎn lājī shì bǎohù huánjìng de hǎo xíguàn.

Picking up trash is a good habit for protecting the environment.

即使捡到了贵重物品，也不能据为己有。

Jíshǐ jiǎn dào le guìzhòng wùpǐn, yě bùnéng jù wéi jǐ yǒu.

Even if you pick up valuable items, you cannot keep them for yourself.

Related Characters

Component: 佥

Component: 扌

捡