Definitions

niǎn to expel; to oust; (dialect) to chase after; to try to catch up with

Etymology phono-semantic

hand

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

This phono-semantic compound serves as an active verb meaning to drive away, expel, or oust. The semantic radical 扌 on the left indicates a physical action performed with the hands. Its traditional form, 攆, uses the phonetic component 輦, meaning a hand-drawn carriage, while the simplified form 撵 adopts the reduced phonetic equivalent 辇. The character commonly appears in colloquial language to describe forcing someone to leave a place.

Example Sentences Hide

走了狗。

Tā niǎn zǒu le gǒu.

He drove away the dog.

妈妈走了野猫。

Māma niǎn zǒu le yě māo.

Mom drove away the stray cat.

保安出了小贩。

Bǎo'ān niǎn chū le xiǎofàn.

The security guard drove out the street vendor.

农民走了田里的鸟。

Nóngmín niǎn zǒu le tián lǐ de niǎo.

The farmer drove away the birds from the field.

房东想走不交租的房客。

Fángdōng xiǎng niǎn zǒu bù jiāo zū de fángkè.

The landlord wants to evict the tenant who doesn't pay rent.

警察散了非法聚集的人群。

Jǐngchá niǎn sàn le fēifǎ jùjí de rénqún.

The police dispersed the illegally gathered crowd.

公司决定走不称职的员工。

Gōngsī juédìng niǎn zǒu bù chènzhí de yuángōng.

The company decided to fire incompetent employees.

政府采取措施走了侵占公共区域的摊贩。

Zhèngfǔ cǎiqǔ cuòshī niǎn zǒu le qīnzhàn gōnggòng qūyù de tānfàn.

The government took measures to drive away the vendors who occupied public areas.