扎眼 (zhā yǎn) — loud, garish, offensively conspicuous (of color…

Definition

Used for colors, clothing, or designs that are too bright or showy, drawing uncomfortable attention. Functions as both a verb and an adjective.

loudgarishoffensively conspicuous (of colors, clothing, etc.)

Easily confused

扎眼。
Zhè jiàn yī fu de yán sè tài zhā yǎn le.
The color of this piece of clothing is too garish.
扎眼，。
Qiáng shàng de huà hěn zhā yǎn, ràng rén bù shū fu.
The painting on the wall is very loud and makes people uncomfortable.
扎眼，。
Tā chuān le yì tiáo zhā yǎn de qún zi, dà jiā dōu kàn tā.
She wore a garish skirt, and everyone stared at her.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

扎 and 眼 picture something pricking the eye, hence garish or conspicuous.

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

Sound part声符shēngfú

乙

乙yǐ扎zhā

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

扎 is built from 手 (hand) and 乙, which gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

目艮眼

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

艮

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

眼 combines 目, which is an eye, with 艮, which gives the character's sound.