攀

pān

手 + 樊

HSK 3.0Level 7

Definitions

pān (verb) to climb (by pulling oneself up)

pān (verb) to claim connections with someone of higher status

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 手 represents the meaning and 樊 represents the sound. Originally written as 𠬜, which depicts two hands facing away from each other, representing the action of climbing.

Semantic: 手 Phonetic: 樊

About

As a phono-semantic compound, 攀 features the semantic hand radical 手 at the bottom, indicating a hand-driven action, with the phonetic component 樊 on top providing the sound. Its core meaning refers to the physical act of climbing or pulling oneself up by gripping something with the hands. This extends literally to scaling mountains, trees, or ropes, and metaphorically to seeking connections with higher-status individuals or implicating others in situations.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

孩子们喜欢攀爬树木。

Háizimen xǐhuān pānpá shùmù.

Children like to climb trees.

我们计划周末去攀岩。

Wǒmen jìhuà zhōumò qù pānyán.

We plan to go rock climbing this weekend.

不要总是和别人攀比。

Bùyào zǒngshì hé biérén pānbǐ.

Don't always compare yourself with others.

他主动和陌生人攀谈。

Tā zhǔdòng hé mòshēngrén pāntán.

He actively struck up a conversation with a stranger.

攀登这座山峰需要专业装备。

Pāndēng zhè zuò shānfēng xūyào zhuānyè zhuāngbèi.

Climbing this peak requires professional equipment.

她不想高攀那些有钱的亲戚。

Tā bùxiǎng gāopān nàxiē yǒuqián de qīnqi.

She doesn't want to curry favor with those wealthy relatives.

尽管天气恶劣，他们还是决定攀登雪山。

Jǐnguǎn tiānqì èliè, tāmen háishì juédìng pāndēng xuěshān.

Despite the bad weather, they still decided to climb the snow mountain.

在学术领域，他不断攀登新的高峰。

Zài xuéshù lǐngyù, tā bùduàn pāndēng xīn de gāofēng.

In the academic field, he continuously climbs new heights.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 手

Component: 樊

攀