màn
noun #15,209

Meanings

  1. 1 creeper; vine; tendril
  2. 2 to spread; to extend

Examples

HSK 2
Qiángshàng pá mǎn le màn.
The wall was covered with creeping vines.
HSK 7-9
Yěhuǒ mànyán dào le shānshàng.
The wildfire spread to the mountain.

Tips

usage
has two readings: màn (creeper; to spread) and mán (only in 蔓菁, turnip). The compound 蔓延 means 'to spread/extend' and is commonly used for fire, disease, or influence.

Components

radical
cǎo
grass; plant (top radical)
Top grass radical, the compressed 3-stroke form of . It indexes in the plant family: flower, grass, stem, vine, trailing creeper. specifically names the long trailing stems of climbing plants - vines, runners, tendrils - so the radical does precise semantic work, marking this as botanical rather than abstract.
phonetic
màn
graceful; long-drawn-out
Bottom supplies the sound directly: màn. Same phonetic powers overflow, slow, steamed bun, deceive. itself depicts a hand pulling something long and drawn out - the perfect semantic echo for a vine, which is precisely a plant stem stretched out across the ground in slow expansion.

Stroke Order

màn