顽

頑

wán

元 + 页

Definitions

wán (adjective) stubborn; obstinate

wán (adjective) naughty; mischievous

wán (verb) to play

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 页 represents the meaning and 元 represents the sound. Simplified form of 頑.

Semantic: 页 Phonetic: 元

About

The character 顽 (traditional: 頑) is a phono-semantic compound with the phonetic component 元 on the left and the semantic radical 页/頁 (meaning "head") on the right. Originally, it described someone with a thick head, implying dullness or ignorance. Over time, the meaning shifted to denote strong-willed stubbornness, defiance of authority, or, for children, energetic mischief. While 元 means "first" or "original", it contributes only to the pronunciation here, not the character's core meanings.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

这个小孩很顽皮。

Zhè ge xiǎo hái hěn wán pí.

This child is very naughty.

他的想法很顽固。

Tā de xiǎng fǎ hěn wán gù.

His thinking is very stubborn.

运动员顽强地比赛。

Yùn dòng yuán wán qiáng dì bǐ sài.

The athlete competed tenaciously.

顽皮的风筝飞走了。

Wán pí de fēng zheng fēi zǒu le.

The naughty kite flew away.

顽固的石头很难打破。

Wán gù de shí tou hěn nán dǎ pò.

The stubborn stone is hard to break.

她以顽强的意志完成了任务。

Tā yǐ wán qiáng de yì zhì wán chéng le rèn wù.

She completed the task with tenacious will.

那个顽皮的男孩经常在课堂上捣乱。

Nà ge wán pí de nán hái jīng cháng zài kè táng shàng dǎo luàn.

That naughty boy often causes trouble in class.

尽管环境恶劣，植物却顽强地生长在岩石缝隙中。

Jǐn guǎn huán jìng è liè, zhí wù què wán qiáng dì shēng zhǎng zài yán shí fèng xì zhōng.

Despite the harsh environment, plants grow tenaciously in the cracks of rocks.

Related Characters

Component: 元

Component: 页

顽