Definition
粘 (zhān) means 'to stick, glue, or adhere' — it focuses on the action of using an adhesive to join two surfaces. Unlike 贴 (tiē), which means to stick something onto a surface (like a stamp or poster), 粘 emphasizes the bonding process itself, often using glue or a sticky substance. 粘贴 (zhān tiē) is the compound combining both ideas, common in computing for 'copy and paste'.
verb
to stickto glueto adhere
Easily confused
- 钻zuānlook-aliketo drill, to bore (a hole)
- 站zhànsound-alikestation (bus, train, etc.)
- 贴tiēlook-aliketo stick, to paste, to post (e.g. online)
- 站zhànsound-alike(verb) to stand
- 沾zhānlook-aliketo touch (and get something on), to come into contact with
- 占zhànsound-aliketo occupy, to take up (space, time, or a position)
- 店diànlook-alikeshop; store
- 盏zhǎnsound-alike(classifier) for lamps, lanterns, and other light sources (also literary: small cup)
- 斩zhǎnsound-aliketo behead (as capital punishment)
- 蘸zhànsound-aliketo dip (in ink, sauce, etc.)
Examples
- 粘。Qǐng bǎ xìnfēng de kǒu zhān shàng.Please glue the flap of the envelope shut.
- ，粘。Zhè guǎn jiāoshuǐ bú tài hǎo le, zhān bú zhù.This tube of glue is not very good anymore — it won't hold.
- 粘。Tā xiǎoxīn de bǎ suì zhǐ piàn zhān zài yìqǐ.She carefully glued the torn pieces of paper together.
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