犯 (fàn) · to violate; to commit (a crime or mistake)

Meanings

1 to violate; to commit (a crime or mistake)
2 criminal; offender
3 to have an attack of (illness)

Characters

犯

fàn

to commit (a crime); criminal

Examples

HSK 4

谁都会犯错误。

Shéi dōu huì fàn cuòwu.

Everyone makes mistakes.

HSK 5

老毛病又犯了。

Lǎomáobìng yòu fàn le.

The old problem has flared up again.

HSK 6

犯法的人要受到惩罚。

Fànfǎ de rén yào shòudào chéngfá.

Those who break the law must be punished.

Tips

usage

犯不着 means 'it's not worth it' - a very useful colloquial expression. 犯得着吗？ = 'Is it really worth it?'

memory

犭 (dog radical) + 㔾 - the dog radical appears in characters related to animal-like behavior. A criminal 'acts like a beast.'

Components

radical

犭 quǎn

dog; beast (radical)

Left beast radical - the side-stacking form of 犬 (dog). Originally pictured a dog rearing up; in 犯 it suggests an animal pouncing or attacking. Family: 狗 (dog), 猫 (cat), 狂 (wild), 猎 (hunt). The radical frames the meaning as a violent or transgressive act, like a beast crossing into forbidden territory.

semantic

㔾 jié

kneeling person

Right 㔾 - a stylised kneeling/crouched person. The whole character is a compound ideograph: a beast (犭) attacking a kneeling figure (㔾), capturing the violent overstepping that gives 犯 its meanings 'commit (a crime), violate, offend, transgress.' Phonetic role secondary; the meaning leans semantic.