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荏

rěn
noun #58,275

Meanings

  1. 1 perilla; beefsteak plant (an aromatic herb)
  2. 2 weak; soft

Examples

HSK 7-9
色厉内荏形容外表强硬，内心怯懦。
Sèlì-nèirěn xíngróng wàibiǎo qiángyìng, nèixīn qiènuò.
"Stern outside but soft within" describes someone who acts tough but is timid inside.
HSK 7-9
荏的种子可以榨油。
Rěn de zhǒngzi kěyǐ zhà yóu.
The seeds of the perilla plant can be pressed for oil.

Tips

usage
Besides naming the perilla herb, 荏 means "weak" in the set phrase 色厉内荏 ("fierce outside, weak inside"). It also appears in 荏苒, "(of time) slipping by".

Components

radical
艹 cǎo
grass; plant
艹 is the grass radical, marking the original sense of 荏 as a herb.
phonetic
任 rèn
to bear; to appoint
任 supplies the sound (rèn shifted to rěn) and carries no meaning here. The same phonetic appears in 妊 and 衽.

Stroke Order

荏 rěn