魇 (yǎn): to have a nightmare; to cry out…

Meanings

1 to have a nightmare; to cry out in a frightening dream

Characters

魇

yǎn

to have a nightmare

Examples

他做了梦魇，惊醒了过来。

Tā zuò le mèngyǎn, jīngxǐng le guòlái.

He was gripped by a nightmare and woke with a start.

那段记忆像梦魇一样缠着她。

Nà duàn jìyì xiàng mèngyǎn yíyàng chán zhe tā.

That memory haunts her like a nightmare.

Tips

usage

Usually in 梦魇 (nightmare). It describes the frightening dream where you feel pinned down, unable to move or call out, and is often used figuratively for a haunting memory.

Components

radical

鬼 guǐ

ghost; spirit

The ghost radical anchors the meaning: a nightmare was imagined as an evil spirit pressing down on the sleeper.

phonetic

厌 yàn

to detest; be sated

Wraps the upper-left and supplies the reading, close to yǎn; its sense of revulsion fits the dread of a nightmare.

Stroke Order

魇 yǎn

Related Words

梦魇 mèngyǎn #14,001

nightmare

拔 bá HSK 5 #2,896

to pull up; to pull out; to uproot / to select; to promote; to stand out

出局 chūjú HSK 7-9 #2,394

to be eliminated; to be out / to be knocked out (of a competition)

抽 chōu HSK 4 #1,379

to draw out / to pull out / to smoke (cigarettes) / to extract

出 chū HSK 1 #105

to go out / to come out / to produce / to appear

抽出 chōuchū #8,273

to draw out; to pull out / to find (time); to set aside

出海 chūhǎi #8,973

to go out to sea; to put out to sea / to go overseas (for business expansion)

彻头彻尾 chètóu-chèwěi #9,186

through and through / from beginning to end / out-and-out; thoroughly

撤离 chèlí HSK 6 #4,986

to withdraw; to evacuate / to pull out (from a location)

避开 bìkāi #4,764

to avoid / to steer clear of / to get out of the way