挽

輓

wǎn

免 + 扌

HSK 3.0Level 7

Definitions

wǎn (verb) to pull; to draw (a cart or bow)

wǎn (verb) to roll up; to coil

wǎn (verb) to carry on the arm

wǎn (verb) to lament the dead

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 扌 represents the meaning and 免 represents the sound. Simplified form of 輓.

Semantic: 扌 Phonetic: 免

About

挽 is a phono-semantic compound: the hand radical 扌 indicates a manual action, and 免 (miǎn) provides the pronunciation. It is also the simplified form of 輓, which paired the cart radical 車 with the same phonetic 免 to mean pulling a cart. In 挽, the hand radical replaces the cart, emphasizing the act of pulling by hand. The character's meanings include pulling, drawing a vehicle, and rolling up sleeves; figuratively, it extends to pulling a situation back from the brink of disaster, rescuing, retrieving, or saving it from failure.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Seal Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

他挽着妈妈的手过马路。

Tā wǎn zhe māma de shǒu guò mǎlù.

He held his mother's hand while crossing the street.

我想挽回这段友谊。

Wǒ xiǎng wǎnhuí zhè duàn yǒuyì.

I want to salvage this friendship.

医生们努力挽救病人的生命。

Yīshēngmen nǔlì wǎnjiù bìngrén de shēngmìng.

The doctors worked hard to save the patient's life.

她的这番话挽回了尴尬的局面。

Tā de zhè fān huà wǎnhuíle gāngà de júmiàn.

Her words saved the awkward situation.

公司正在采取措施挽救经济损失。

Gōngsī zhèngzài cǎiqǔ cuòshī wǎnjiù jīngjì sǔnshī.

The company is taking measures to挽回 the economic loss.

朋友们极力挽留他多住几天。

Péngyoumen jílì wǎnliú tā duō zhù jǐ tiān.

Friends tried hard to persuade him to stay a few more days.

这个计划旨在挽救濒危物种。

Zhège jìhuà zhǐ zài wǎnjiù bīnwēi wùzhǒng.

This plan aims to save endangered species.

他用实际行动挽回了大家的信任。

Tā yòng shíjì xíngdòng wǎnhuíle dàjiā de xìnrèn.

He used practical actions to regain everyone's trust.

Related Characters

Component: 免

Component: 扌

挽