拈

niān

n+iān·1st tone

to nip · to grasp with the fingers

Radical: 扌 Strokes: 8

Structure: Left narrow, right wideFrequency: Level 2 character

Same radical

打拉指报托折推接投护提排

Same radical

打拉指报托折推接投护提排才扬执

New to Chinese?Start with pinyin·See the learning path·Browse all tools

Stroke Order · 8 strokes (click to expand)

Click the button below to start stroke animation

Character Decomposition

拈=扌+占

Etymology

To divine 占 by hand 扌; 占 also provides the pronunciation

Meanings

to nip

to grasp with the fingers

to fiddle with

Taiwan pr. nián

niān

Loading examples…

Words with 拈 41 total

burn incense拈香niān xiāng a snap of the fingers · a short moment · in a flash · in the twinkling of an eye拈指niān zhǐ (old) to be jealous拈酸niān suān lit. to pick the flowers and trample the grass (idiom) · fig. to womanize · to frequent brothels · to sow one's wild oats拈花惹草niān huā rě cǎo pick easy jobs and shirk hard ones · prefer the light to the heavy · prefer the light and shirk the heavy拈轻怕重niān qīng pà zhòng have words, material, etc. at one's fingertips and write with facility pick up something at random信手拈来xìn shǒu niān lái lit. to stretch a hand and grab it (idiom) · fig. easy to do手到拈来shǒu dào niān lái

Idioms with 拈 17 total Chain

lit. to pick the flowers and trample the grass (idiom) · fig. to womanize · to frequent brothels · to sow one's wild oats拈花惹草niān huā rě cǎo pick easy jobs and shirk hard ones · prefer the light to the heavy · prefer the light and shirk the heavy拈轻怕重niān qīng pà zhòng

Want to practice speaking with a real teacher? Find a 1-on-1 Chinese tutor on italki (affiliate)