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玩wán

to play; to have fun (玩耍, 玩笑); to play with; to toy with (玩弄); to enjoy; to appreciate (玩赏, 古玩)

玩 is to play — with toys, with jokes, or appreciating fine old things.

GF0025–2021 character list · 一级
One character pageAll readings and linked senses stay together.

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ZDIC: 形声; the jade side carries the meaning, 元 the sound.

left / right · 玩

WHOLE CHARACTER

玩wán

to play; to have fun (玩耍, 玩笑); to play with; to toy with (玩弄); to enjoy; to appreciate (玩赏, 古玩)

玩 is to play — with toys, with jokes, or appreciating fine old things.

ZDIC: 形声; the jade side carries the meaning, 元 the sound.

MEANING (THE JADE FORM)

王wáng

king; jade-related form

Jade side piece in 班 per ZDIC; repeated for the two jade sides.

In 玩: meaning (the jade form) The left 王 here is the jade form, not the king.

SOUND

元yuán

origin; first

Sound clue in 园.

In 玩: sound Sound side per ZDIC: yuán (final üan) and wán (final uan) differ in final; both are tone 2; y/w mark zero-initial syllables, not comparable initials.

wánTone 2
  • to play; to have fun (玩耍, 玩笑)
  • to play with; to toy with (玩弄)
  • to enjoy; to appreciate (玩赏, 古玩)
  • 玩笑wánxiàoa joke
  • 玩具wánjùtoy

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