绞 (jiǎo): to twist (strands into a thread)

Meanings

1 to twist (strands into a thread)
2 to wring
3 to hang (by the neck); to strangle
4 to entangle

Characters

绞

jiǎo

to twist; to wring; to strangle

Examples

她绞干了毛巾上的水。

Tā jiǎo gān le máojīn shàng de shuǐ.

She wrung the water out of the towel.

他绞尽脑汁想办法。

Tā jiǎojìnnǎozhī xiǎng bànfǎ.

He racked his brains trying to think of a solution.

Tips

usage

绞尽脑汁 (jiǎojìn nǎozhī) is a very common idiom meaning 'to rack one's brains'. Literally: 'wring out all the brain juice'.

Components

radical

纟 sī

silk; thread (radical form of 糸)

Left-side silk radical — the side form of 糸, three knotted strokes evoking a small skein. It supplies the meaning: twisting strands and hanging by a noose are both rope-and-thread actions. The radical anchors 绞 in the cord family alongside 织 weave, 结 tie, 缠 wind, 缚 bind.

phonetic

交 jiāo

to cross; intersect

Right side 交 supplies the sound — jiāo shifting to jiǎo through a tone change. A strong semantic flavor leaks in: 交 pictures two legs crossing, and twisting threads (or ropes around a neck) is exactly that crossing motion repeated. Same phonetic appears in 较 compare, 饺 dumpling, 校 school.