万般 (wàn bān) — (adverb) extremely, utterly (used with negative emotions or states); (attributive) all kinds of, various

Definition

Literary/attributive intensifier: 'all kinds of' before a noun, or 'utterly' before a negative emotion (无奈, 痛苦). High-register; in speech prefer 各种 / 非常.

adverb
extremelyutterly (used with negative emotions or states)
adjective
(attributive) all kinds ofvarious

Examples

  • 万般，。
    Tā gǎn dào wàn bān wú nài, zhǐ hǎo fàng qì.
    He felt utterly helpless and had to give up.
  • 万般，。
    Miàn duì wàn bān kùn nan, tā méi yǒu tuì suō.
    Facing all kinds of difficulties, he didn't back down.
  • 万般，。
    Tā xīn zhōng wàn bān tòng kǔ, què shuō bù chū kǒu.
    She was extremely pained inside but couldn't express it.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

万wànmyriad
般bānkind

万, myriad, and 般, kind, give all sorts or utterly.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 萬; 万 is its simplified writing.

For 万, the form 萬 was originally a picture of a scorpion, later borrowed for its sound to write 'ten thousand'; the scorpion picture is unrelated to that number.

Open 万 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 般 →

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