沾 meaning and stroke order
To moisten; to be infected by; to receive benefit or advantage through a contact
How to write 沾, stroke by stroke
8 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 沾
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to moisten
- to be infected by
- to receive benefit or advantage through a contact
- to touch
- variant of 沾[zhan1]
How 沾 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Water.
氵 gives the meaning and 占 hints at the sound.
Radical: 氵 (water), shared by 467 characters on this site.
How to remember 沾
沾 combines the water radical 氵 with 占 (zhàn), which gives the sound. Picture water drops landing on and occupying a spot, so the thing gets wet or touched.
沾 describes something getting a bit of liquid or dirt on it, or lightly touching something. It also appears in 沾光 (zhānguāng), meaning to benefit from being connected to someone. Example: 他的手上沾满了泥。(Tā de shǒu shang zhānmǎn le ní.) His hands were covered in mud.
Common mistake: Learners often read 沾 with the fourth tone because of 占 (zhàn), but 沾 is first tone, zhān. Do not confuse it with 粘 (zhān), which means to stick or glue things together, not to get wet.
Common words with 沾
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
沾 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Characters that contain 沾
Learning 沾 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 沾
How many strokes are in 沾?
沾 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 沾 mean?
沾 (zhān) means to moisten; to be infected by; to receive benefit or advantage through a contact. A common word with it is 沾光 (zhānguāng), meaning "to bask in the light; fig. to benefit from association with sb or sth".
How do you pronounce 沾?
沾 is pronounced zhān, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 沾?
The radical of 沾 is 氵, which carries the idea of "water". Dictionaries list 沾 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 沾?
The traditional form of 沾 is 霑. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 沾 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 沾 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 沾 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 沾光 really mean in daily speech?
沾光 means you gain some benefit because you are close to someone or something successful. For example, 我沾了你的光 (wǒ zhān le nǐ de guāng) means I benefited thanks to you, and it is often said politely.
How is 沾 different from 湿 (shī)?
湿 is an adjective meaning wet. 沾 is a verb meaning to get something on you by contact, like water, dust, or sauce, as in 沾酱油 (zhān jiàngyóu), to dip in soy sauce.