潸

shān

adverb #55,727

Meanings

1 tearfully
2 with flowing tears

Characters

潸

shān

tearfully

Examples

HSK 4

听到她要走，老人潸然落泪。

Tīngdào tā yào zǒu, lǎorén shānrán luòlèi.

At the news of her departure, the old man wept silently.

HSK 6

读着旧信，她不禁潸然泪下。

Dú zhe jiùxìn, tā bùjīn shānrán lèixià.

Reading the old letter, she could not help bursting into tears.

Tips

usage

You will almost only ever see 潸然泪下 - a set literary phrase for tears welling up suddenly and uncontrollably. 潸 on its own is not used in modern speech.

Components

radical

氵 shuǐ

water

Left-side water radical, the three-drop form of 水. Tears are water, so the whole 'weeping' meaning hangs on this radical.

phonetic

散 sàn

to scatter

The right side is an abbreviated 散 supplying the sound. 'To scatter' faintly fits too - tears scattering down a face.

Stroke Order

潸 shān

潸