染 (rǎn): to dye, to catch (a disease), to acquire (bad habits etc)
染 (rǎn) is a Chinese character meaning “to dye.” Classified as HSK Level 4 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 氿 (structural) and 木 (structural). It ranks #1139 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 染 water 氵 and wine 九 mixed in a wooden 木 bowl. Its radical form 木 (tree) appears in many related characters such as 本 (běn, (bound form) root), 机 (jī, machine, opportunity), 条 (tiáo, strip).
Definitions
- to dye
- to catch (a disease)
- to acquire (bad habits etc)
Etymology & Origin
ideographicWater 氵 and wine 九 mixed in a wooden 木 bowl
Decomposition: ⿱氿木 (layout: top-bottom)
Stroke Order
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Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 染
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 感染verb | gǎn rǎn | to infect | 6 |
| 污染 | wū rǎn | to pollute | 4 |
| 传染verb | chuán rǎn | to infect | 6 |
| 传染病noun | chuán rǎn bìng | infectious disease | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 染色体 | rǎn sè tǐ | chromosome |
| 染上 | rǎn shàng | to catch (a disease) |
| 感染力 | gǎn rǎn lì | infectiousness (of a disease) |
| 染指 | rǎn zhǐ | to dip a finger (idiom) |
| 传染性 | chuán rǎn xìng | infectious |
| 染料 | rǎn liào | dye |
| 染发 | rǎn fà | to dye one's hair |
| 染色 | rǎn sè | dye |
| 污染物 | wū rǎn wù | pollutant |
| 感染者 | gǎn rǎn zhě | infected person |
| 渲染 | xuàn rǎn | rendering (computing) |
| 一尘不染 | yī chén bù rǎn | (idiom) untainted by even a speck of dust |
| 沾染 | zhān rǎn | to pollute (often fig.) |
| 染病 | rǎn bìng | to catch an illness |
| 染发剂 | rǎn fà jì | hair dye |
染 appears in 84 compound words: 21 as the first character, 51 as the last, and 27 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 染 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (12)
droplet infection (disease transmission from sneezing, coughing etc)
lit. dip one's finger in the tripod (idiom); fig. to get one's finger in the pie; to get a share of the action
to be unstained by an evil environment; to be selfless and incorruptible; to be immaculate; to be spotless
droplet infection (disease transmission from sneezing, coughing etc)
lit. dip one's finger in the tripod (idiom); fig. to get one's finger in the pie; to get a share of the action
Example Sentences
爷爷在门前种了一棵染苗,现在已经长得很高了。
yé yé zài mén qián zhǒng le yī kē rǎn miáo , xiàn zài yǐ jīng cháng dé hěn gāo le .
Grandpa planted a sapling by the door, and now it has grown quite tall.
...下面窄到一根手指都疼是怎么回事?是不是感染了某种妇科病
. . . xià miàn zhǎi dào yī gēn shǒu zhǐ dōu téng shì zěn má huí shì ? shì bù shì gǎn rǎn le mǒu zhǒng fù kē bìng
... What's going on with the bottom so narrow that a finger hurts? Is it infected with some kind of gynecological disease?
...表明:监管缺失的商业航天活动正成为大气污染新威胁
. . . biǎo míng : jiān guǎn quē shī de shāng yè háng tiān huó dòng zhèng chéng wéi dà qì wū rǎn xīn wēi xié
... It shows that commercial space activities without regulation are becoming a new threat to air pollution
科学家针对全球 95% 人口感染的 EB 病毒取得关键突破,为移植患者带...
kē xué jiā zhēn duì quán qiú 9 5 rén kǒu gǎn rǎn de E B bìng dú qǔ dé guān jiàn tū pò , wéi yí zhí huàn zhě dài . . .
Scientists have made a key breakthrough in the field of EBV, which infects 95% of the world's population, bringing transplant patients...
长假后“性病筛检增3成” 泌尿医曝观察:染淋病、披衣菌最常见
cháng jiǎ hòu xìng bìng shāi jiǎn zēng 3 chéng mì niào yī pù guàn chá : rǎn lín bìng , pī yī jūn zuì cháng jiàn
After the long holiday, "STD screening increased by 30%" Urologist exposure observation: gonorrhea and chlamydia are the most common
蓝白喊关税重启谈判昔前功尽弃 他批刻意渲染恐慌
lán bái hǎn guān shuì chóng qǐ tán pàn xī qián gōng jǐn qì tā pī kè yì 渲 rǎn kǒng huāng
Blue and white shouted tariffs to restart negotiations, and his criticism deliberately exaggerated panic
工厂的废料导致了严重的环境污染。
Gōngchǎng de fèiliào dǎozhì le yánzhòng de huánjìng wūrǎn.
The factory waste gave rise to serious environmental pollution.
疟疾是由蚊子传染的。
Nüèjí shì yóu wénzi chuánrǎn de.
Malaria is carried by mosquitoes.
废水经常污染海洋。
Fèishuǐ jīngcháng wūrǎn hǎiyáng.
Sewage often pollutes the ocean.
空气被废气污染了。
Kōngqì bèi fèiqì wūrǎn le.
The air was polluted by exhaust gas.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
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What characters sound the same as 染 (rǎn)?
Is 染 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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