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缠绕 (chán rào) — to twine around, to wind around; to pester, to bother

Definition

缠绕 covers two senses: physically winding around (e.g. vines) and figuratively pestering/lingering in the mind. For 'pester', it's stronger and more persistent than 磨 ('nag'); for the physical sense, it's interchangeable with 缠.

verb
to twine aroundto wind aroundto pesterto bother

Examples

  • 缠绕。
    Cǎi dài chán rào zài shù shàng.
    Colorful ribbons are wound around the tree.
  • 缠绕。
    Tā zhěng tiān chán rào zhe wǒ jiè qián.
    He pesters me all day to borrow money.
  • 缠绕。
    Wǎng shì chán rào zài xīn tóu.
    Past events linger in the heart.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

缠chánwind
绕ràowind

缠 and 绕 both describe winding around, giving 缠绕 the sense of twining or pestering.

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 纏; 缠 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìsilk
Sound part声符shēngfú
廛
廛chán纏chán
Same sound today

The traditional form 纏 combines 糸 (silk) with 廛 as the sound part; the simplified 缠 is a shorthand, and its right side is not the historical sound part.

Open 缠 →

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 繞; 绕 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìrope
Sound part声符shēngfú
堯
堯yáo繞rào
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 繞 pairs 糸 (rope) with 堯 as a sound component; the simplified 绕 is a later shorthand.

Open 绕 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6

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