拧 (nìng) · stubborn; bullheaded

Meanings

1 stubborn; bullheaded
2 contrary; difficult to deal with

Characters

拧

nìng

stubborn; bullheaded

Examples

HSK 1

这孩子真拧，谁的话都不听。

Zhè háizi zhēn nìng, shéi de huà dōu bù tīng.

This kid is really bullheaded; he won't listen to anyone.

HSK 6

他脾气拧，越逼越不动。

Tā píqi nìng, yuè bī yuè bù dòng.

He has a contrary temper, and the more you push him the less he budges.

Tips

usage

The nìng reading describes a stubborn, contrary personality, someone who digs in and resists. It is mostly colloquial and northern. The action verbs 'twist / wring' (nǐng) and 'pinch' (níng) are separate readings of the same character.

Components

radical

扌 shǒu

hand (left-form)

Left-side hand radical, the compressed form of 手 used along the left edge. It supplies the meaning: an action done with the hands. The character covers a tight family of grip-and-turn motions: twist, wring, pinch, screw. It joins 扭, 拽, and 捏 in the manual-action family.

phonetic

宁 níng

peaceful; rather

Right 宁 supplies the sound, an exact match for the level-tone reading níng (and nǐng / nìng in the other senses). 宁 itself shows a roof 宀 over 丁, picturing peace under shelter; that 'peaceful' meaning is incidental here, the right side is read purely for sound.