蜷缩 (quán suō) — to curl up; to huddle together

Definition

verb

to curl upto huddle together

蜷缩。
Nà zhī māo xǐ huan quán suō zài wēn nuǎn de dì fāng.
That cat likes to curl up in warm places.
蜷缩。
Tā lěng dé quán suō chéng yì tuán.
He was so cold that he curled himself into a ball.
蜷缩。
Tā men quán suō zài chē lǐ děng yǔ tíng.
They huddled in the car waiting for the rain to stop.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

缩suōcontract

'蜷' and '缩' both describe bending or contracting the body, so together they mean to curl up or huddle.

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.

虫卷蜷

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

卷

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

蜷 uses 虫 to show an insect and 卷 to give the sound.

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 縮; 缩 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糸糸mìstring, thread

Sound part声符shēngfú

宿

宿sù縮suō

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

The traditional form 縮 pairs 糸 (string, thread) with 宿, which gives the sound; the simplified 缩 is a shorthand.