抢购 (qiǎng gòu) — to rush to purchase, to panic-buy

Definition

抢购 is a verb meaning to rush to buy something quickly, usually in large quantities, often driven by panic or a sale. It emphasizes the urgent, frenzied act of buying — not just 'to buy' (买).

verb

to rush to purchaseto panic-buy

Examples

，抢购。
Shuāng shí yī de shí hou, hěn duō rén dōu zài wǎng shàng qiǎng gòu shāng pǐn.
During Double Eleven, many people rush to purchase goods online.
，抢购。
Tīng shuō kǒu zhào yào zhǎng jià, dà jiā fēn fēn qù yào diàn qiǎng gòu.
Hearing that masks were going up in price, everyone rushed to buy them at the pharmacy.
抢购。
Chāo shì lǐ de dà mǐ bèi qiǎng gòu yì kōng.
The rice in the supermarket was snapped up in a shopping rush.

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.

抢qiǎngrush

购gòubuy

“抢” adds the sense of rushing, and “购” means buy, so the word means to rush to purchase.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 搶; 抢 is its simplified writing.

扌倉搶

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒu

Sound part声符shēngfú

倉

倉cāng搶qiǎng

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 搶 pairs 扌 (hand) with 倉, which gives the sound; the simplified 抢 is a shorthand, so its right side is not the historical component.

Open 抢 →

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 購; 购 is its simplified writing.

貝冓購

Meaning part形符xíngfú

貝貝bèishellfish

Sound part声符shēngfú

冓

冓gòu購gòu

Same sound today

The traditional form 購 pairs 貝, a shellfish, with 冓, which gives the sound; the simplified 购 is a later shorthand.

Open 购 →