弯弯曲曲 (wān wān qū qū) — winding, meandering, zigzagging

Definition

A vivid reduplicated adjective for paths, rivers, or lines that twist and turn repeatedly — stronger and more picturesque than 弯曲 on its own. Often used as a pre-modifier with 的/地.

bound form

windingmeanderingzigzagging

Examples

弯弯曲曲。
Yì tiáo wān wān qū qū de xiǎo lù tōng xiàng shān dǐng.
A winding path leads to the mountaintop.
弯弯曲曲。
Zhè tiáo hé wān wān qū qū dì liú guò cūn zhuāng.
This river meanders through the village.
弯弯曲曲。
Tā de huà shàng yǒu xǔ duō wān wān qū qū de xiàn tiáo.
His painting has many zigzagging lines.

Origin

Reduplicated word

构词法gòucífǎ

重叠chóngdiéReduplication

A syllable said twice — for affection, for softness, or simply because that is how the word is said.

弯弯bent

弯wānbent弯wānbent

曲曲curved

曲qǔcurved曲qǔcurved

弯 and 曲 are repeated to describe a winding, zigzag shape.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 彎; 弯 is its simplified writing.

弓䜌彎

Meaning part形符xíngfú

弓弓gōngbow

Sound part声符shēngfú

䜌

䜌䜌彎wān

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

The traditional form 彎 pairs 弓 (bow) with 䜌 as a sound part; the simplified 弯 is a later shorthand.

Open 弯 →