洼

窪

wā

圭 + 氵

Definitions

wā (noun) depression; sunken area; hollow

wā (noun) swamp

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 氵 represents the meaning and 圭 represents the sound. Simplified form of 窪.

Semantic: 氵 Phonetic: 圭

About

洼 is a phono-semantic compound: the water radical 氵 on the left provides the meaning of moisture or liquid, while 圭 on the right indicates the sound. It is the simplified form of the traditional character 窪, which added the cave radical 穴 on top to emphasize a hollow or depression. The character primarily denotes a low-lying area, hollow, or topographic depression where rainwater collects into puddles, and by extension any concave surface or sunken contour.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

这里有个小水洼。

zhè lǐ yǒu gè xiǎo shuǐ wā。

There is a small puddle here.

雨后路面形成了许多洼。

yǔ hòu lù miàn xíng chéng le xǔ duō wā。

After the rain, many depressions formed on the road surface.

车辆小心地绕过那个深洼。

chē liàng xiǎo xīn de rào guò nà gè shēn wā。

The vehicle carefully drove around that deep pothole.

这片洼地适合种植水稻。

zhè piàn wā dì shì hé zhòng zhí shuǐ dào。

This low-lying land is suitable for planting rice.

那个水洼里映出了蓝天白云。

nà gè shuǐ wā lǐ yìng chū le lán tiān bái yún。

The blue sky and white clouds were reflected in that puddle.

城市开发时要注意填平那些积水洼。

chéng shì kāi fā shí yào zhù yì tián píng nà xiē jī shuǐ wā。

When developing the city, attention must be paid to filling in those waterlogged depressions.

这片地形低洼，容易发生内涝。

zhè piàn dì xíng dī wā， róng yì fā shēng nèi lào。

The terrain here is low-lying, making it prone to waterlogging.

地质勘探队正在调查盆地边缘的沉降洼地。

dì zhì kān tàn duì zhèng zài diào chá pén dì biān yuán de chén jiàng wā dì。

The geological survey team is investigating the subsidence depressions at the edge of the basin.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 圭

Component: 氵

洼