困倦 (kùn juàn) — sleepy, fatigued | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

adjective

sleepyfatigued

，困倦。
Gōng zuò le yì zhěng tiān, wǒ gǎn dào fēi cháng kùn juàn.
After working all day, I feel very sleepy.
，困倦。
Tā áo yè xiě bào gào, xiàn zài kùn juàn dé zhēng bù kāi yǎn jing.
He stayed up late writing the report, and now he's so sleepy he can't keep his eyes open.
，困倦。
Cháng tú fēi xíng hòu, lǚ kè men dōu hěn kùn juàn.
After the long flight, the passengers were all fatigued.

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.

困倦 combines 困 (sleepy) and 倦 (tired) to mean drowsy exhaustion.

Characters in this word

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

囗木困

困 is drawn as 木 (wood) enclosed by 囗 (surround). The evidence says this was probably the original form of a word meaning 'doorsill'.

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

人人rénperson

Sound part声符shēngfú

龹

龹龹倦juàn

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

倦 is 人 (person) plus 龹, a sound part; the form 卷 can serve as that sound part.