菸 (yān) — (bound form) tobacco; cigarette (variant of 烟)

Definition

菸 (yān) is a bound/obsolete form of 烟, used mainly in set compounds like 菸草 and 菸民. In modern Chinese, prefer 烟.

bound form

tobaccocigarette (variant of 烟)

菸。
Tā měi tiān xī yì bāo yān cǎo.
He smokes a pack of tobacco every day.
菸。
yān Jiǔ de shuì shōu zhàn le hěn dà bǐ lì.
Taxes on tobacco and alcohol account for a large proportion.
菸。
Xǔ duō yān mín dōu xiǎng jiè yān.
Many smokers want to quit.

Sound + meaning

六书liùshū

形声xíngshēng

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

艸艸cǎograss; plant

Sound part声符shēngfú

於

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

菸 pairs 艸 (grass; plant) with 於, which supplies the sound.

Appears in