Meaning of 撑
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to support
- to prop up
- to push or move with a pole
- to maintain
- to open or unfurl
- to fill to bursting point
- brace
- stay
How to use 撑
撑 is used for holding something up, keeping going through hardship, opening an umbrella, and feeling stuffed after eating. A very common everyday phrase is 我吃撑了 (wǒ chī chēng le), I ate so much I'm stuffed. You will also hear 撑伞 (chēng sǎn), to hold up an umbrella.
撑 has the hand radical 扌 on the left and 掌 (zhǎng, palm) on the right. Picture pressing your palm against something to hold it up, which is the core idea of supporting or propping up.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 撑 with 掌 (zhǎng, palm), since 撑 contains it. Remember 撑 adds the hand radical 扌 on the left and is pronounced chēng with a first tone.
撑 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
撑 chēng · to support · 15 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 撑.
Questions about 撑
What does 撑 mean?
撑 (chēng) means "to support; to prop up" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 撑?
撑 is made of 1 character: 撑 (15 strokes). That is 15 strokes in total.
Is 撑 an HSK word?
Yes. 撑 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 撑 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 撑 is written 撐.
How do you say "hang in there" with 撑?
People say 撑住 (chēng zhù) or 再撑一下 (zài chēng yíxià), meaning hold on or keep going a bit longer. 撑不住了 (chēng bú zhù le) means I can't hold on anymore.
What does 撑腰 mean literally and in practice?
Literally it means to prop up someone's waist. In practice it means to back someone up or give them support, often in a conflict, as in 有人给他撑腰 (yǒu rén gěi tā chēngyāo), someone is backing him.