搶 meaning and stroke order
Urgent, rushed; to rob, to plunder
How to write 搶, stroke by stroke
13 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 搶
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- (literary) to knock against (esp. to knock one's head on the ground in grief or rage)
- opposite in direction; contrary
- to fight over
- to rush
- to scramble
- to grab
- to rob
- to snatch
How 搶 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Hand.
扌 gives the meaning and 倉 hints at the sound.
Radical: 扌 (hand), shared by 342 characters on this site.
How to remember 搶
搶 combines the hand radical 扌 with 倉 (cāng), a granary. Picture a hand reaching into the granary to grab the grain before anyone else can.
搶 (qiǎng) means to grab, snatch, or rush to do something first. It appears in words like 抢劫 (qiǎngjié, to rob) and 抢先 (qiǎngxiān, to get in first). Example: 他抢了我的手机。(Tā qiǎng le wǒ de shǒujī.) He snatched my phone.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 搶 (qiǎng) with 槍 (qiāng, gun), which shares the phonetic 倉 but uses the wood radical 木 and a first tone. Check the left side: hand 扌 means grabbing, wood 木 means gun.
Common words with 搶
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 搶救 | qiǎngjiù | to rescue | HSK 5 |
| 搶劫 | qiǎngjié | to rob; looting | HSK 7-9 |
| 搶奪 | qiǎngduó | to plunder; to pillage | HSK 7-9 |
| 搶眼 | qiǎngyǎn | eye-catching | HSK 7-9 |
| 搶走 | qiǎngzǒu | to snatch (esp related to a robbery) | |
| 搶劫案 | qiǎngjié'àn | robbery; holdup | |
| 搶先 | qiǎngxiān | to rush (to do sth urgent); to try to be the first | |
| 搶手 | qiǎngshǒu | (of goods) popular; in great demand | |
| 搶佔 | qiǎngzhàn | to seize (the strategic high ground) |
Questions about 搶
How many strokes are in 搶?
搶 is written with 13 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 搶 mean?
搶 (qiǎng) means urgent, rushed; to rob, to plunder. A common word with it is 抢救 (qiǎngjiù), meaning "to rescue".
How do you pronounce 搶?
搶 is pronounced qiǎng, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 搶?
The radical of 搶 is 扌, which carries the idea of "hand". Dictionaries list 搶 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 搶?
搶 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 抢, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Why is 搶 written 抢 in most word lists?
抢 is the simplified form used in mainland China, and 搶 is the form used in Taiwan and Hong Kong. The meaning and pronunciation are the same.
Does 搶 always mean something negative like robbery?
No. It can be neutral or positive, as in 抢救 (qiǎngjiù, to rescue) or 抢手 (qiǎngshǒu, in high demand). The core idea is grabbing or rushing, and context decides whether it is a crime or just urgency.