寻 (xún): to search, to look for, to seek
寻 (xún) is a Chinese character meaning “to search.” Classified as HSK Level 5 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 彐 (semantic) and 寸 (phonetic). It ranks #962 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 寻 snout. Its radical form 寸 (inch) appears in many related characters such as 对 (duì, right), 封 (fēng, to confer), 导 (dǎo, to transmit).
Definitions
- to search
- to look for
- to seek
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 寻 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 寻
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 寻常adjective | xún cháng | usual |
| 搜寻verb | sōu xún | to search |
| 找寻verb | zhǎo xún | to look for |
| 追寻verb | zhuī xún | to pursue |
| 不同寻常phrase | bù tóng xún cháng | out of the ordinary |
| 寻觅verb | xún mì | to look for |
| 非同寻常 | fēi tóng xún cháng | (idiom) extraordinary |
| 寻死verb | xún sǐ | to attempt suicide |
| 寻开心verb | xún kāi xīn | to make fun of |
| 探寻verb | tàn xún | to search |
| 寻欢作乐phrase | xún huān zuò lè | pleasure seeking (idiom) |
| 寻思verb | xún sī | to consider |
| 自寻烦恼 | zì xún fán nǎo | to bring trouble on oneself (idiom) |
| 异乎寻常phrase | yì hū xún cháng | unusual |
| 寻根verb | xún gēn | to seek one's roots |
寻 appears in 61 compound words: 62 as the first character, 13 as the last, and 25 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 寻 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (14)
lit. to examine roots and inquire at the base (idiom); to get to the bottom of sth
to enjoy the beautiful spring scenery; to visit prostitutes; to frequent brothels
lit. to examine roots and inquire at the base (idiom); to get to the bottom of sth
Showing 12 of 14 idioms containing 寻.
Example Sentences
我在字典里查到了寻字的详细解释。
wǒ zài zì diǎn lǐ chá dào le xún zì de xiáng xì xiè shì .
I looked up the detailed explanation of the character "寻" in the dictionary.
莫迪访问以色列 寻求加强双边合作
mò dí fǎng wèn yǐ sè liè xún qiú jiā qiáng shuāng biān gě zuò
Modi visited Israel to seek to strengthen bilateral cooperation
2000户社区寻亲难 大安警10分钟助洋童与爸妈团圆
2 0 0 0 hù shè qū xún qīn nán dà ān jǐng 1 0 fēn zhōng zhù yáng tóng yǔ bà mā tuán yuán
It is difficult for 2,000 households to find relatives in the community, and the Da'an police helped foreign children reunite with their parents in 10 minutes
美国加州大规模雪崩夺9命 寻获最后遗体
měi guó jiā zhōu dà guī mó xuě bēng duó 9 mìng xún huò zuì hòu yí tǐ
A massive avalanche in California, USA, claimed 9 lives and found the last body
...长21米、高7米“巨型鳌鱼”飞了 全网急寻
. . . cháng 2 1 mǐ , gāo 7 mǐ jù xíng 鳌 yú fēi le quán wǎng jí xún
... The 21-meter-long, 7-meter-high "giant turtle" flew and the whole network was urgently searching
寻马记|能看到86匹灵动骏马的北齐壁画博物...
xún mǎ jì néng kàn dào 8 6 pǐ líng dòng jùn mǎ de běi qí bì huà bó wù . . .
Horse hunting|Northern Qi mural museum where you can see 86 smart horses...
格列佛为寻求探险而旅行。
Gé liè Fó wèi xúnqiú tànxiǎn ér lǚxíng.
Gulliver traveled in quest of adventure.
罗德里格搜寻房间。
Luó Délǐ gé sōuxún fángjiān.
Rodrigo searched the room.
列昂尼德搜寻了网际网路。
Liè áng ní dé sōuxún le wǎngjìwǎnglù.
Leonid searched the Internet.
他寻找一切可能的逃生途径。
Tā xúnzhǎo yīqiè kěnéng de táoshēng tújìng.
He looked for every possible means of escape.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 寻 (xún) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 寻 and 村?
How many strokes does 寻 have?
What is the radical of 寻?
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What are common words containing 寻?
What characters sound the same as 寻 (xún)?
Is 寻 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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