驯 (xùn) — to tame (an animal or one's temper); to attain gradually (literary)
Definition
驯 means to tame — typically a wild animal (tiger, horse), or figuratively one's temper or emotions. It's almost always followed by 服 (驯服) and reads as more literary than 训.
verb
to tame (an animal or one's temper)to attain gradually (literary)
Easily confused
Examples
- ，。Zhè zhī lǎo hǔ hěn nán xùn fú, xū yào hěn duō shí jiān hé nài xīn.This tiger is very hard to tame; it requires a lot of time and patience.
- ，。Tā yòng le liǎng nián xùn fú nà pǐ mǎ, xiàn zài tā hěn tīng huà.She spent two years taming that horse, and now it is very obedient.
- ，。Tā xué huì le xùn fú zì jǐ de pí qi, bú zài qīng yì fā huǒ.He learned to tame his own temper and no longer gets angry easily.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 馴; 驯 is its simplified writing.
Meaning part形符xíngfú
馬馬mǎ
Sound part声符shēngfú
川
川chuān馴xùn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
The traditional form 馴 uses 馬 (horse) for the meaning and 川 for the sound; the simplified 驯 is a later shorthand.
Appears in
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.