引

yǐn
#479 most
frequent character
lead, guide, draw, stretch, lure
verb

Character breakdown

Source: Make Me a Hanzi.

引 shows 弓, a bow, with a stroke 丨 marking the pull. It first meant drawing a bow. That grew to pulling or drawing anything, then to leading and directing, and finally to citing a source.

Drawn as: bow being drawn

引 as a component in other characters

meaning1 character
矧
sound1 character
蚓
picture1 character
吲

Ask DeepSeek

Example Sentences

她引导学生们完成作业。
tā yǐndǎo xuéshēng mén wánchéng zuòyè 。
She guides the students to complete their homework.
他把我们引到了正确的方向。
tā bǎ wǒmen yǐn dàole zhèngquè de fāngxiàng 。
He led us in the right direction.
你能引起他的兴趣吗？
nǐ néng yǐnqǐ tāde xìngqù ma ？
Can you attract his interest?

Words with similar meanings

带dài
to bring
This verb implies leading someone or something along with you, focusing on companionship.
引导yǐndǎo
to guide
This is a more formal way of expressing the act of leading someone, often implying instruction.
吸引xīyǐn
to attract
This verb specifically relates to drawing someone's interest or attention.

Words Starting With 引

引起yǐn qǐ
to give rise to; to lead to; to cause; to arouse
引导yǐn dǎo
to guide; to lead; to conduct; introduction
引擎yǐn qíng
engine (transliteration)
引用yǐn yòng
to quote; to cite; to recommend; to appoint

Your word lists

Sign in to add this word to your private lists.