揽

攬

lǎn

扌 + 览

HSK 3.0Level 7

Definitions

lǎn (verb) to take into one's arms; to embrace

lǎn (verb) to seize; to monopolize

lǎn (verb) to take on (responsibility)

Etymology phono-semantic

hand

Semantic: 扌 Phonetic: 览

About

揽 is a phono-semantic compound: the hand radical 扌 indicates an action of grasping or drawing toward oneself, while 览 (simplified from 覽) provides the pronunciation. In its traditional form 攬, the phonetic is 覽, itself built from elements meaning to look or view. The character originally denoted physically gathering things by hand, such as collecting materials or taking hold of objects. Over time, its meaning broadened to include abstract actions like taking on responsibilities, monopolizing markets, or soliciting customers. The simplified 揽 replaces 覽 with 览, drastically reducing strokes, but the hand radical and the core meaning of grasping and taking control remain unchanged.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

他揽了太多责任。

Tā lǎn le tài duō zérèn.

He took on too much responsibility.

她总是揽下所有的工作。

Tā zǒngshì lǎn xià suǒyǒu de gōngzuò.

She always takes on all the work.

为了团队，他主动揽了错误。

Wèile tuánduì, tā zhǔdòng lǎn le cuòwù.

For the team, he proactively took the blame.

这家店用优惠揽客。

Zhè jiā diàn yòng yōuhuì lǎn kè.

This shop uses discounts to attract customers.

如果你揽了这个活，就要做完。

Rúguǒ nǐ lǎn le zhège huó, jiù yào zuò wán.

If you take on this job, you must finish it.

政府计划揽下基础设施建设。

Zhèngfǔ jìhuà lǎn xià jīchǔ shèshī jiànshè.

The government plans to take on infrastructure construction.

他因为揽了太多任务而感到压力。

Tā yīnwèi lǎn le tài duō rènwù ér gǎndào yālì.

He feels stressed because he took on too many tasks.

尽管知道风险，他还是决定揽下这个挑战性的项目。

Jǐnguǎn zhīdào fēngxiǎn, tā háishì juédìng lǎn xià zhège tiǎozhàn xìng de xiàngmù.

Despite knowing the risks, he still decided to take on this challenging project.

Related Characters

Component: 扌

Component: 览

揽