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陷于 (xiàn yú) — to fall into (a difficult situation); to be caught in (a predicament)

Definition

A formal/written verb meaning 'to fall into' a bad situation (crisis, war, blame). Distinct from 陷入, which is more common and takes a noun object directly; 陷于 emphasizes a state already entered.

verb
to fall into (a difficult situation)to be caught in (a predicament)

Examples

  • 陷于。
    Gōng sī xiàn yú cái wù wēi jī.
    The company fell into a financial crisis.
  • 陷于。
    Tā xiàn yú shēn shēn de zì zé zhī zhōng.
    He fell into deep self-blame.
  • 陷于。
    Zhè ge guó jiā xiàn yú nèi zhàn duō nián.
    This country has been caught in civil war for years.

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.

陷xiànfall into
于yúto/into

陷 (fall) + 于 (into) expresses being caught in a difficult situation.

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
阜阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
臽
臽xiàn陷xiàn
Same sound today

In 陷, the older form 臽 pictured falling into a trap; 阜 was added later to differentiate it.

Open 陷 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 一一yīflat stream of air
  • 丂丂kǎoto exhale

The old shape of 于 may have pictured an ancient wind instrument. Another explanation reads 一 as a flat stream of air and 丂 as an exhaling mark.

Open 于 →
Appears in
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