Definition
沉 (chén) means 'to sink' — physically go down in liquid — and also 'heavy' or 'deep' (as in sleep or voice). Unlike 淹没 (yānmò, to submerge/inundate, often covering completely) or 陷 (xiàn, to sink into a soft surface and get stuck), 沉 focuses on the downward movement itself. As an adjective, it describes weight or depth (e.g., 睡得很沉 sleep deeply).
to sinkto submergeheavy(of sleep, voice, etc.) deepprofound
Easily confused
- 壳kélook-alikeshell (of an egg, nut, animal, etc.)
- 趁chènsound-alike(preposition) taking advantage of (a favorable time or condition); while a condition is still available)
Examples
- ，沉。Mùtou bǐ shítou qīng, suǒyǐ bú huì chén.Wood is lighter than stone, so it won't sink.
- 沉，。Zhè zhāng zhuōzi tài chén le, wǒ bān bú dòng.This table is too heavy — I can't move it.
- 沉，。Tā shuì de hěn chén, wàimiàn yǒu rén jiào tā yě méi xǐng.He sleeps very deeply; even though someone called him from outside, he didn't wake up.
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