冻

凍

dòng

东 + 冫

HSK 2.0Level 5

HSK 3.0Level 5

Definitions

dòng (verb) to freeze

dòng (verb) to feel very cold

dòng (adjective) frozen; icy

dòng (noun) aspic; jelly

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 冫 represents the meaning and 东 represents the sound. Simplified form of 凍.

Semantic: 冫 Phonetic: 东

About

The character 冻 is the simplified form of 凍, a phono-semantic compound. Its left side is the two-stroke ice radical 冫, which semantically relates to cold, freezing, or ice. The right side is the simplified component 东, serving as the phonetic element that indicates the pronunciation. Etymologically, the character describes the physical process of a liquid solidifying due to cold. Its meaning includes freezing, feeling intensely cold, or being affected by frost, and it appears in contexts related to weather, refrigeration, and icy conditions.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

湖水冻得很厚。

Hú shuǐ dòng de hěn hòu.

The lake water froze very thick.

冬天，窗户上冻了冰。

Dōngtiān, chuānghu shàng dòng le bīng.

In winter, ice froze on the window.

食物放在冰箱里冻着。

Shíwù fàng zài bīngxiāng lǐ dòng zhe.

The food is frozen in the refrigerator.

寒冷的天气冻坏了庄稼。

Hánlěng de tiānqì dònghuài le zhuāngjia.

The cold weather froze the crops.

他被冻得直打哆嗦。

Tā bèi dòng de zhí dǎ duōsuo.

He was frozen so much that he kept shivering.

为了防止食物变质，我们把它冻起来。

Wèile fángzhǐ shíwù biànzhì, wǒmen bǎ tā dòng qǐlái.

To prevent food from spoiling, we freeze it.

冻僵的手指几乎无法弯曲。

Dòngjiāng de shǒuzhǐ jīhū wúfǎ wānqū.

The frozen fingers could hardly bend.

由于极端低温，整个湖面都被冻结了，甚至可以看到冻裂的痕迹。

Yóuyú jíduān dīwēn, zhěnggè húmiàn dōu bèi dòngjié le, shènzhì kěyǐ kàndào dòngliè de hénjì.

Due to extreme low temperature, the entire lake surface was frozen, and even cracks from freezing could be seen.

Related Characters

Component: 东

Component: 冫

冻