蜂拥 (fēng yōng) — to swarm, to flock (of people or animals moving in large numbers)

Definition

A vivid verb meaning people or animals surge forward in a huge, chaotic crowd. It pictures a swarm of bees (蜂) and is used for large, overwhelming movements — not small groups.

verb
to swarmto flock (of people or animals moving in large numbers)

Examples

  • ，。
    Rén men fēng yōng ér zhì, dōu xiǎng mǎi xīn chǎn pǐn.
    People swarmed in, all wanting to buy the new product.
  • 蜂拥，。
    Fěn sī men fēng yōng shàng tái, yāo qiú ǒu xiàng qiān míng.
    Fans swarmed onto the stage, asking for the idol's autograph.
  • 蜂拥，。
    Yóu kè fēng yōng ér lái, cān guān zhè zuò gǔ chéng.
    Tourists swarmed in to visit this ancient city.

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.

蜂fēngbee
拥yōngcrowd

蜂 'bee' describes the manner of 拥 'crowd', meaning to move in a dense swarm.

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
虫虫chónginsect
Sound part声符shēngfú
夆
夆páng蜂fēng
Same sound today

蜂 puts 虫, showing an insect, beside 夆, which gives its sound.

Open 蜂 →

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
用
用yòng拥yōng
Same sound today

拥 pairs 扌 (hand) with 用, which gives the sound.

Open 拥 →

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