霎

shà

妾 + 雨

Definitions

shà all of a sudden; drizzle

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 雨 represents the meaning and 妾 represents the sound.

Semantic: 雨 Phonetic: 妾

About

霎 is a phono-semantic compound: the radical 雨 (rain) sits at the top, connecting the character to weather and meteorological phenomena, while 妾 at the bottom provides the sound. In its earliest usage, the character denoted a sudden, light rain shower, quick to arrive and depart, not a heavy or prolonged downpour. Because such showers are fleeting, the meaning gradually broadened to an abstract concept: a very brief moment, a split second, an instant. This temporal sense is the most common one in modern Chinese.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

霎时天晴了。

Shàshí tiān qíng le.

The sky cleared up instantly.

霎时间雨停了。

Shàshíjiān yǔ tíng le.

The rain stopped in a flash.

他一霎那就明白了。

Tā yīshànà jiù míngbái le.

He understood in an instant.

霎时全场寂静。

Shàshí quánchǎng jìjìng.

The entire place fell silent instantly.

天空霎时变得漆黑。

Tiānkōng shàshí biàn de qīhēi.

The sky suddenly turned pitch black.

就在那一霎间，事故发生了。

Jiù zài nà yīshàjiān, shìgù fāshēng le.

At that very moment, the accident happened.

灯光霎时闪烁，然后熄灭了。

Dēngguāng shàshí shǎnshuò, ránhòu xīmiè le.

The lights flickered for an instant and then went out.

他思绪万千，但霎时间便做出了决定。

Tā sīxù wànqiān, dàn shàshíjiān biàn zuòchū le juédìng.

He had countless thoughts, but in an instant, he made a decision.

Related Characters

Component: 妾

Component: 雨

霎