Definitions
bird catching net; to bind; to hang
Etymology
About
The character 罥 is a phono-semantic compound describing the act of catching or entangling things in a net. It is formed with the semantic radical 罒 (wǎng, meaning net) on top of the phonetic component 肙 (yuān, originally meaning a small worm or emptiness). The net radical establishes the character’s core function, linking it to woven tools used for trapping. Its meaning ranges from the literal capture of animals with mesh traps to the broader physical entanglement of objects, such as branches snagged in ropes, conveying a state of being suspended or caught.