wáng
verb #6,571

Meanings

  1. 1 to die; to perish
  2. 2 to flee; to escape
  3. 3 deceased; lost

Examples

Sǐwáng rénshù hěnduō.
The death toll is high.
Táowáng dào guówài.
To flee abroad.

Tips

usage
Literary/formal; common in 死亡 (death), 灭亡 (to perish).

Components

radical
tóu
lid radical; top mark
Xinhua indexes under the (lid) radical, picking the top dot-and-stroke as the anchor. In oracle bone forms the cap was a hiding figure's head; the modern silhouette has converged on a clean lid that serves as the dictionary handle.
ideograph
yǐn
hide; concealing hook
A single bent stroke functioning as an abstract marker beneath the lid above — together they form the fused silhouette that has carried the meaning to flee, perish, lose since the earliest forms. Historically the lower hook traced a person ducking out of sight.

Stroke Order

wáng