Definition
窄 (zhǎi) is the everyday adjective for physically narrow (a road, doorway) and, figuratively, narrow-minded (心胸窄). Unlike 狭窄 (xiá zhǎi) and 狭小 (xiá xiǎo), which are more formal and literary, 窄 is the default spoken word. For 'hard up' (financially), 紧 (jǐn) is more common in everyday speech; 窄 in this sense is less frequent.
adjective
narrow (physically)narrow-mindedhard upbadly off (financially)
Easily confused
- 榨zhàlook-aliketo press, to squeeze (juice, oil)
- 摘zhāisound-aliketo pick (flowers, fruit, etc.)
- 窑yáolook-alikekiln (for firing pottery, bricks, or lime)
- 债zhàisound-alikedebt
- 穿chuānlook-aliketo wear, to put on (clothing, shoes, etc.)
Examples
- 窄，。Zhège lóutī hěn zhǎi, shàngxià yào xiǎoxīn.This staircase is narrow; be careful going up and down.
- 窄，。Tā xīnxiōng hěn zhǎi, bù néng jiēshòu bùtóng yìjiàn.He is very narrow-minded and cannot accept different opinions.
- 窄，。Nà duàn shíjiān shǒutóu hěn zhǎi, lián jīběn shēnghuó dōu kùnnán.During that time, I was very hard up; even basic living was difficult.
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