lìn / lín
verb #7,021

Meanings

  1. 1 to filter; to strain
  2. 2 to drain off liquid
  3. 3 (medicine) gonorrhea; (TCM) painful urination

Examples

Lìnbìng shì yì zhǒng xìngbìng.
Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted infection.
Yòng bù bǎ yánshuǐ lìn yí biàn.
Strain the salt water through cloth.

Tips

usage
The lìn reading covers 'to filter or strain' and the medical sense seen in 淋病 (gonorrhea). In traditional medicine it also names painful or dripping urination. The common 'pour / drench' verb is the separate reading lín.

Components

radical
shuǐ
water (radical)
Three-drop water radical on the left, the side-stacking form of . Marks the character as a liquid-pouring action: drenching, drizzling, pouring water down. Family of pour-related verbs: (sprinkle), (splash), (drip), (scatter).
phonetic
lín
forest; grove
Right (two trees = grove) supplies the sound lín exactly. The image is also evocative: water raining down through a forest canopy, drops falling steadily, a useful mnemonic for 'drench, drizzle'. Same phonetic family: (fine jade), (approach), (downpour).

Stroke Order

lìn