(dūn) — to squat, to crouch; (colloquial) to stay (somewhere) for a long time, to hang around

Definition

蹲 (dūn) means physically crouching low with knees bent — the body posture sense. The 'stay somewhere for a long time' meaning is colloquial, like camping out (e.g. 蹲守).

verb
to squatto crouch(colloquial) to stay (somewhere) for a long timeto hang around

Examples

  • Tā dūn zài lù biān děng chē.
    He squatted by the roadside waiting for the bus.
  • Wèi le wán chéng shí yàn, tā dūn zài shí yàn shì yì zhěng tiān.
    To finish the experiment, he stayed in the lab all day.
  • Jǐng chá dūn shǒu le sān tiān, zhōng yú zhuā zhù le xián yí rén.
    The police staked out for three days and finally caught the suspect.

Origin

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

蹲 pairs 足 (foot) with 尊, which gives the sound, to write the idea of sitting.

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