弱

ruò
HSK 5
#1,036 most
frequent character
weak, feeble, young, inferior
adjective

Character breakdown

Source: Make Me a Hanzi.

弱 first drew a person urinating, and the modern shape doubles that picture. Its old meaning was to urinate. The shape was borrowed for its sound to mean weak or feeble, and from there inferior and young.

Drawn as: two people urinating

弱 as a component in other characters

sound3 characters
溺搦蒻
picture1 character
溺

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Example Sentences

我的身体很弱，我需要锻炼。
wǒde shēntǐ hěn ruò ， wǒ xūyào duànliàn 。
My body is very weak, I need to exercise.
这棵树的树枝很弱，容易折断。
zhè kē shù de shù zhī hěn ruò ， róngyì zhéduàn 。
The branches of this tree are very weak and can easily break.
他在比赛中表现得有些弱。
tāzài bǐsài zhōng biǎoxiàn dé yǒuxiē ruò 。
He performed somewhat weakly in the competition.

Words with similar meanings

虚弱xūruò
feeble
More formal and can imply a state of illness or lack of strength.
软弱ruǎnruò
soft
Conveys a sense of weakness but can also imply a lack of resolve.

Words Starting With 弱

弱点ruò diǎn
weak point; failing

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