围堵

圍堵
wéidǔ
verb #36,186

Meanings

  1. 1 to surround and block off
  2. 2 to encircle, to contain
  3. 3 to hem in

Examples

Jǐngfāng wéidǔ le xiányírén cángshēn de xiǎo xiàng.
The police sealed off the alley where the suspect was hiding.
Jìzhěmen zài jīchǎng wéidǔ zhè wèi míngxīng.
Reporters mobbed the star at the airport.

Tips

usage
Combines (wéi, 'to surround') with (dǔ, 'to block/plug') — encircling plus actively cutting off escape. Common in security/police contexts and in geopolitics: 围堵政策 (wéidǔ zhèngcè, 'containment policy') is the standard Chinese term for the U.S. Cold War policy toward the USSR.
memory
If you've ever been stuck in a 堵车 (dǔchē, 'traffic jam'), you know means 'blocked solid'. 围堵 is what happens when that blockage is set up around something on purpose.

Stroke Order

wéi