Definitions

guàn (noun) can; jar; pot

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound. Simplified form of .

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

The character 罐, simplified from the traditional form 鑵, structurally combines the phonetic component 雚 (guàn) with a semantic radical that shifted from 金, meaning metal, to 缶, denoting earthenware, which aligns with a semantic evolution from specifically metal vessels to a general term for jars, pots, and cans made of materials like pottery or tin.

Etymology Hide

Bronze etymology image
Bronze Mid Western Zhou (~900 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我买了一个子。

Wǒ mǎi le yī gè guànzi.

I bought a jar.

子里有糖果。

Guànzi lǐ yǒu tángguǒ.

There are candies in the jar.

请打开那个头。

Qǐng dǎkāi nàge guàntou.

Please open that can.

易拉很方便。

Yìlāguàn hěn fāngbiàn.

Pull-tab cans are convenient.

他把钱存进储蓄

Tā bǎ qián cún jìn chǔxùguàn.

He saves money in a piggy bank.

这个玻璃是用来装饼干的。

Zhège bōli guàn shì yòng lái zhuāng bǐnggān de.

This glass jar is used to store cookies.

如果你有易拉,可以回收它们。

Rúguǒ nǐ yǒu yìlāguàn, kěyǐ huíshōu tāmen.

If you have pull-tab cans, you can recycle them.

那个锈迹斑斑的铁曾经装过茶叶。

Nàge xiùjì bānbān de tiě guàn céngjīng zhuāng guò cháyè.

That rusty iron can once contained tea leaves.