获 (huò) · to obtain; to get

Meanings

1 to obtain; to get
2 to capture; to catch

Characters

获

huò

to obtain; to harvest

Examples

HSK 4

他获了一等奖。

Tā huò le yīděngjiǎng.

He won first prize.

HSK 4

经过努力，他终于获得了成功。

Jīngguò nǔlì, tā zhōngyú huòdé le chénggōng.

After hard work, he finally achieved success.

HSK 5

这部电影获了很多好评。

Zhè bù diànyǐng huò le hěnduō hǎopíng.

This film received a lot of positive reviews.

Tips

usage

获 is literary and rarely used alone in modern speech. It's almost always seen in compounds: 获得 (obtain), 获取 (acquire), 获奖 (win an award), 收获 (harvest/gain).

history

The traditional form 獲 contains 犬 (dog radical), originally referring to a hunting dog catching prey. Over time, the meaning broadened to 'obtain' in general.

Components

radical

艹 cǎo

grass (radical form of 草)

Top grass radical, 艹 is the compressed form of 草. It is a simplification artefact rather than original etymology: 1956 reform merged traditional 獲 (catch - 犭 hunting) and 穫 (harvest grain - 禾) into one 获, and 艹 was chosen to cover the harvest sense for grain and produce.

semantic

犭 quǎn

dog; animal (radical form of 犬)

Lower-left 犭 preserves the original 'hunt' image of traditional 獲 - a hunting dog seizing prey. Same animal radical anchors 猎 (hunt), 狗 (dog), 狮 (lion). Pairs with the dog on the right to give a 'two-dog hunting party' feel after simplification collapsed the ancient 隹 (bird) + 又 (hand) elements.

semantic

犬 quǎn

dog

Bottom-right 犬 (full dog form). The simplified glyph collapses the traditional 隹 (bird being seized) + 又 (hand) into this 犬 shape, producing the now-iconic '艹 + 犭 + 犬' silhouette. Reads pedagogically as 'grass plus two dogs' - two dogs catching what's hidden in the brush.