抢滩 (qiǎng tān) — (military) to assault a beach; to make an amphibious landing

Definition

Originally a military term for an amphibious beach assault, now widely used figuratively to mean an aggressive first move into a new market or territory. Common pattern: 抢滩 + 市场 / 领域.

verb
(military) to assault a beachto make an amphibious landing

Examples

  • 抢滩。
    Wǒ jūn chéng gōng qiǎng tān.
    Our army successfully assaulted the beach.
  • ，。
    Nà jiā gōng sī xiān qiǎng le tān, zhàn jù le shì chǎng.
    That company seized the market first by making an aggressive entry.
  • 抢滩。
    Tā men shì tú qiǎng tān zhōng guó shì chǎng.
    They are trying to seize the Chinese market.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

抢qiǎngseize
滩tānbeach

抢 means to seize and 滩 is a beach: to seize a beach by assault.

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 →

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 灘; 滩 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
氵Written in full as水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
難
難nán灘tān
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 灘, 氵 (water) marks the meaning and 難 gives the sound; the simplified 滩 is a shorthand.

Open 滩 →

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