撬

qiào
扌 + 毳
HSK 3.0Level 7

Definitions

qiào to lift; to pry open; to lever open

Etymology phono-semantic

hand

Semantic: 扌 Phonetic: 毳

About

The character 撬 is a phono-semantic compound, combining the semantic radical 扌 and the phonetic 毳. The radical 扌 is the side-placement form of 手 'hand', pointing to manual manipulation. The phonetic 毳 consists of three 毛 components, which give the syllabic reading. The meaning of 撬 is to pry, to lever, or to force something open, using a tool such as a crowbar. The semantic range is limited to this concrete application of physical force, without developing abstract secondary meanings.

Example Sentences Hide

他用撬棍撬开箱子。

Tā yòng qiàogùn qiào kāi xiāngzi.

He used a crowbar to pry open the box.

工人撬动了石头。

Gōngrén qiào dòngle shítou.

The worker levered the stone.

这把撬棍很结实。

Zhè bǎ qiàogùn hěn jiēshi.

This crowbar is very sturdy.

他们想撬开那扇门。

Tāmen xiǎng qiào kāi nà shàn mén.

They want to pry open that door.

小偷试图撬开保险箱。

Xiǎotōu shìtú qiào kāi bǎoxiǎnxiāng.

The thief tried to pry open the safe.

消防员用工具撬开了变形的车门。

Xiāofángyuán yòng gōngjù qiào kāile biànxíng de chēmén.

The firefighter used tools to pry open the deformed car door.

我们需要合力才能撬动这块巨石。

Wǒmen xūyào hé lì cái néng qiào dòng zhè kuài jùshí.

We need to work together to lever this huge rock.

工程师设计了一个杠杆系统来撬起重物。

Gōngchéngshī shèjìle yī gè gànggǎn xìtǒng lái qiào qǐ zhòngwù.

The engineer designed a lever system to lift heavy objects.

Related Characters

Component: 扌

把 提 打 报 接 指 据 拉 持 技 找 推 投 护

Component: 毳

橇 膬 竁

Example Words

撬开 撬动 撬锁 撬门