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抢手 (qiǎng shǒu) — (of goods) in great demand, very popular; (of a person) sought after, much wanted

Definition

抢手 (qiǎng shǒu) is an adjective for goods or people that everyone wants right now — 'in great demand, hot.' It is more vivid and market-flavored than a plain 'popular.'

adjective
(of goods) in great demandvery popular(of a person) sought aftermuch wanted

Examples

  • 抢手。
    Zhè ge pái zi de shǒu jī zuì jìn hěn qiǎng shǒu.
    This brand of smartphone has been in great demand lately.
  • 抢手。
    Yǎn chàng huì de piào yì kāi mài jiù biàn de fēi cháng qiǎng shǒu.
    Tickets for the concert became very popular as soon as they went on sale.
  • 抢手。
    Zhè wèi shè jì shī de zuò pǐn zài shì chǎng shàng hěn qiǎng shǒu.
    This designer's pieces are much sought after on the market.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

抢qiǎnggrab
手shǒuhand

When many 手 抢 it, the goods are in great demand.

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 搶; 抢 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
扌Written in full as手shǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
倉
倉cāng搶qiǎng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 搶 pairs 扌 (hand) with 倉, which gives the sound; the simplified 抢 is a shorthand, so its right side is not the historical component.

Open 抢 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →
Appears in
Marketing & Sales

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