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玩意儿 (wán yì r) — thing, stuff (colloquial, referring to an object); toy, plaything; trick, gimmick (colloquial, often derogatory)

Definition

Colloquial erhua form of 玩意, used to dismissively refer to a thing, a toy, or someone's 'tricks'. More casual than 玩具 ('toy'); pairs with 鬼 in slang like 鬼玩意儿 to mock something trifling.

noun
thingstuff (colloquial, referring to an object)toyplaythingtrickgimmick (colloquial, often derogatory)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 玩意儿。
    Zhè ge wán yì r shì wǒ zì jǐ zuò de.
    This thing was made by myself.
  • 玩意儿，。
    Bié pèng nà xiē wán yì r, hěn wēi xiǎn.
    Don't touch those things — they're dangerous.
  • 玩意儿。
    Tā nà xiē wán yì r piàn bù liǎo wǒ.
    His little tricks won't fool me.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

玩意toy
玩wánplay意yìinterest
偏正Modifier + head
儿érerhua

玩 “play” and 意 “interest” suggest a thing for amusement, and 儿 gives a familiar spoken feel.

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
玉玉yùjade
Sound part声符shēngfú
元
元yuán玩wán
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

玩 pairs 玉 (jade) with 元 (yuán) for sound. The jade part points to toys made of jade.

Open 玩 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 意 →

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

The shape 儿 is a simple drawing of a standing person, used as an alternate form of the character for person.

Open 儿 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Miscellaneous Objects

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