懵 (měng) — muddled, confused (bound form, used in compounds); ignorant, unaware (bound form, used in compounds)
Definition
懵 is a bound form meaning 'muddled, in a daze' — it doesn't stand alone but builds compound words like 发懵 (to be stunned) and 懵然不知 (completely unaware).
bound form
muddledconfused (bound form, used in compounds)ignorantunaware (bound form, used in compounds)
Examples
- ，。Tā kàn qǐ lái yǒu diǎn měng dǒng, xiàng gè méi zhǎng dà de hái zi.He seems a bit naive and muddled, like a child who hasn't grown up.
- ，懵，。Tīng dào zhè ge xiāo xi, tā yí xià zi fā měng le, bàn tiān shuō bù chū huà.Upon hearing this news, he was suddenly stunned and couldn't speak for a long time.
- 懵，。Tā duì zhè jiàn shì měng rán bù zhī, méi rén gào sù guò tā.She was completely ignorant of this matter; no one had told her.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.
Sound part声符shēngfú
瞢
瞢méng懵měng
Same sound today
The shape puts 心 (heart) beside 瞢, which supplies the sound.
Appears in
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.