阱 (jǐng): pitfall; trap

Meanings

1 pitfall; trap

Characters

阱

jǐng

pitfall; trap

Examples

HSK 7-9

猎人在林子里挖了陷阱来捕野猪。

Lièrén zài línzilǐ wā le xiànjǐng lái bǔ yězhū.

The hunters dug pits in the woods to catch wild boar.

HSK 7-9

他差点掉进骗子的陷阱。

Tā chàdiǎn diàojìn piànzi de xiànjǐng.

He almost fell into the swindler's trap.

Tips

usage

阱 is a covered pit dug to trap animals, and figuratively a scheme to ensnare people. It almost always appears as 陷阱 (a trap).

Components

radical

阝 fù

mound; terrain (left form)

The left-side ear radical 阝 here stands for 阜 (a mound or earthwork), pointing to digging into the ground, which is how a pit-trap is made.

phonetic

井 jǐng

a well

Right side 井 (a well) supplies the sound jǐng exactly, and its image of a dug shaft fits the trap-pit meaning perfectly.

Stroke Order

阱 jǐng

Related Words

陷阱 xiànjǐng HSK 7-9 #3,519

trap / pitfall / snare

踩坑 cǎikēng

to fall into a trap / to get burned (by a product / deal) / to hit a pitfall

圈套 quāntào HSK 7-9 #5,038

trap / snare / trick

汕 shàn #64,758

(in place names) Shantou / bamboo fish trap

陷 xiàn HSK 7-9 #4,564

to sink / trap / to get stuck

坑 kēng HSK 7-9 #5,222

pit; hole; hollow / to cheat; to swindle (verb) / to trap; to set someone up (verb)

迷魂阵 míhúnzhèn #64,103

a soul-bewildering formation / a trap meant to confuse and ensnare / a scheme designed to lose its victim in the fog

靳 jìn #58,542

(classical) the leather chest-strap of a harnessed horse / (classical) to be grudging; surname Jin

落入 luòrù #8,194

to fall into; to drop into / to land in (a trap, a situation)

美人计 měirénjì #31,146

honey trap; the 'beauty trap' stratagem / scheme to entrap an enemy by sending in a beautiful woman