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安抚 (ān fǔ) — to placate, to pacify, to appease

Definition

安抚 focuses on soothing someone's upset emotions or anxiety through gentle action. Unlike 安慰 (which is more about words of comfort), 安抚 is more about actively calming someone who is distressed, angry, or uneasy.

verb
to placateto pacifyto appease

Examples

  • 安抚。
    Lǎo shī ān fǔ le nà ge shēng qì de xué shēng.
    The teacher placated that angry student.
  • 安抚。
    Tā ān fǔ le tā de bù ān.
    He soothed her unease.
  • 安抚。
    Zhè ge cuò shī ān fǔ le dà jiā de qíng xù.
    This measure calmed everyone's emotions.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

安ānmake stable
抚fǔsoothe

安 means to make stable and 抚 means to soothe, together expressing pacification.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
宀宀mián
Sound part声符shēngfú
女
女nǚ安ān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 安, 宀 sits above a seated 女 on a cushion; 宀 is the meaning part, 女 is the sound part, and the character originally meant sitting at ease.

Open 安 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 撫; 抚 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
無
無wú撫fǔ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 撫 pairs 手 (hand) with 無 for the sound; the simplified 抚 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 抚 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Emotions & Feelings

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.