掩藏 (yǎn cáng) — to hide, to conceal | tongtong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Literate, written-style verb for 'conceal / hide' (feelings, objects, facts). Stronger and more formal than everyday 藏, often used in written narrative or reportage.

verb

to hideto conceal

Examples

掩藏。
Tā shì tú yǎn cáng zì jǐ de zhēn shí xiǎng fǎ.
He tried to hide his true thoughts.
掩藏。
Jǐng fāng zhǎo dào le zuì fàn yǎn cáng de zāng wù.
The police found the stolen goods that the criminal had hidden.
掩藏。
Tā wú fǎ yǎn cáng nèi xīn de xǐ yuè.
She couldn't conceal her inner joy.

Origin

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.

掩 means to cover and 藏 means to hide; together they express concealing something.

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.

扌奄掩

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

奄

奄yǎn掩yǎn

Same sound today

The left part 扌 is a hand; the right part 奄 gives the character its sound.

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

艸艸cǎograss

Sound part声符shēngfú

臧

臧zāng藏cáng

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

藏 is made from 艸 (grass) and 臧, where 臧 gives the sound.

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.