忘 (wàng): to forget
忘 (wàng) is a Chinese character meaning “to forget.” Classified as HSK Level 2 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 亡 (phonetic) and 心 (semantic). It ranks #1055 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 忘 heart. Its radical form 心 (heart) appears in many related characters such as 想 (xiǎng, to think, to want), 爱 (ài, to love), 心 (xīn, heart, mind).
Definitions
- to forget
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 忘 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 忘
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 忘掉 | wàng diào | to forget |
| 遗忘 | yí wàng | to forget |
| 备忘录 | bèi wàng lù | memorandum |
| 忘却 | wàng què | to forget |
| 健忘 | jiàn wàng | forgetful |
| 忘恩负义 | wàng ēn fù yì | to forget favors and violate justice (idiom) |
| 念念不忘 | niàn niàn bù wàng | to keep in mind constantly (idiom) |
| 忘不了 | wàng bu liǎo | cannot forget |
| 忘怀 | wàng huái | to forget |
| 淡忘 | dàn wàng | to gradually forget as time passes |
| 过目不忘 | guò mù bù wàng | to have a highly retentive memory |
| 忘我 | wàng wǒ | selflessness |
| 忘乎所以 | wàng hū suǒ yǐ | to get carried away |
| 遗忘症 | yí wàng zhèng | amnesia |
| 忘情 | wàng qíng | unmoved |
忘 appears in 63 compound words: 35 as the first character, 22 as the last, and 43 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 忘 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (23)
to study or work hard, neglecting one's meals; be so immersed in work as to forget one's meals
to be completely wrapped up in one's work and skip one's sleep and meals
for the common good and forgetting personal interests (idiom); to behave altruistically; selfless
to forget one's principles whenever tempted by the prospect of personal gain
to remain enjoying oneself and forget to go home; to be unable to tear oneself away; to linger
lit. will not be forgotten even after one's teeth fall out; to remember as long as one lives; unforgettable (idiom)
for the common good and forgetting personal interests (idiom); to behave altruistically; selfless
to forget one's principles whenever tempted by the prospect of personal gain
to remain enjoying oneself and forget to go home; to be unable to tear oneself away; to linger
lit. will not be forgotten even after one's teeth fall out; to remember as long as one lives; unforgettable (idiom)
Showing 12 of 23 idioms containing 忘.
Example Sentences
我忘记带钥匙了，只能等室友回来才能进门。
Wǒ wàngjì dài yàoshi le, zhǐ néng děng shìyǒu huílái cáinéng jìn mén.
I forgot to bring my keys; I can only enter when my roommate returns.
...佩称景点一成不变旅客难免生厌 盼做到乐而忘返、念念不忘
. . . pèi chèn jǐng diǎn yī chéng bù biàn lǚ kè nán miǎn shēng yàn pàn zuò dào lè ér wàng fǎn , niàn niàn bù wàng
... Pei said that the scenic spots are unchanged, and tourists will inevitably get tired of it, hoping to be happy and unforgettable
...客!台女生来港看新年烟花感动呼:这趟很难忘
. . . kè ! tái nǚ shēng lái gǎng kàn xīn nián yān huā gǎn dòng hū : zhè tāng hěn nán wàng
... Guest! Taiwanese girls came to Hong Kong to watch the New Year's fireworks and were moved: This trip is unforgettable
罗淑佩:冀香港旅游做到令旅客乐而忘返念念不忘一来再来
luó 淑 pèi : 冀 xiāng gǎng lǚ yóu zuò dào lìng lǚ kè lè ér wàng fǎn niàn niàn bù wàng yī lái zài lái
Lo Shuk-pui: I hope that Hong Kong tourism will make tourists happy and forget to come back and come again
春节祭英烈 初心永不忘 华北军区烈士陵园开展“春节..
chūn jié zhài yīng liè chū xīn yǒng bù wàng huá běi jūn ōu liè shì líng yuán kāi zhǎn chūn jié . .
Honoring Martyrs During Spring Festival: Never Forget Our Original Aspiration Martyrs' Cemetery of North China Military Region Launches "Spring Festival..."
春节不忘训练!侯友宜化身“一日骑警”,体验马术训...
chūn jié bù wàng xùn liàn ! 侯 yǒu yí huā shēn yī rì qí jǐng , tī yàn mǎ shù xùn . . .
Spring Festival training continues! Hou Youyi transforms into a "one-day mounted police officer" to experience equestrian training...
我怎能忘记那些日子呢？
Wǒ zěnnéng wàngjì nàxiē rìzi ne?
How can I forget those days?
没有人忘记做功课吧？
Méiyǒurén wàngjì zuò gōngkè ba?
No one has forgotten to do the homework, right?
你确定你没有忘记什么吗？
Nǐ quèdìng nǐ méiyǒu wàngjì shénme ma?
Are you sure you haven't forgotten anything?
我怎么能忘记您交付我的任务？
Wǒ zěnme néng wàngjì nín jiāofù wǒ de rènwu?
How could I possibly forget about the task that you've entrusted to me?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 忘 (wàng) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 忘 and 芒?
How many strokes does 忘 have?
What is the radical of 忘?
What are the components of 忘?
What are common words containing 忘?
What characters sound the same as 忘 (wàng)?
Is 忘 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 忘 with real-time feedback
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