框 (kuàng) · frame; border

Meanings

1 frame; border
2 box (on a form); field (for input)

Characters

框

kuàng

frame; border; box

Examples

HSK 5

这幅画需要配一个框。

Zhè fú huà xūyào pèi yígè kuàng.

This painting needs a frame.

HSK 5

请在框里填上你的名字。

Qǐng zài kuàng lǐ tián shàng nǐ de míngzi.

Please fill in your name in the box.

Tips

usage

In tech/UI contexts, 输入框 means 'input field,' 对话框 means 'dialog box,' and 文本框 means 'text box.' If you work in Chinese tech, you'll use 框 constantly.

Components

radical

木 mù

tree; wood

The wood radical on the left tags 框 as a wooden frame - door-jambs, window-frames, picture-borders were carved or jointed from timber. It indexes 框 with the carpentry family: 板 board, 柱 pillar, 桌 table, 椅 chair, 梁 beam.

phonetic

匡 kuāng

rectify; basket-frame

匡 supplies the sound kuāng → kuàng, a clean tone drop. It also adds a strong semantic flavour: 匡 itself depicts a rectangular bamboo basket - a frame holding shape. So 框 reads almost transparently as "wooden frame". Same phonetic family: 筐 basket, 诓 deceive.