How to Write 囔 (nāng) — Meaning “To mutter; to mumble.”

Imagine a bag (囊) over someone's mouth (口), so they can only make low, unclear sounds. You can also think of a person with a bag on their head, mumbling "nāng nāng" to themselves.

Write the left radical 口 first, then the complex right side 囊. The right part has many horizontal strokes in the middle and bottom (the '衣' component); keep them parallel and evenly spaced. A common mistake is making the right side too wide—it should be narrow and tall.

The most common word is 嘟囔 (dū nāng), meaning to mumble or mutter complaints quietly. 囔囔 (nāng nāng) is a reduplicated form with the same meaning, often used to describe continuous low talking to oneself. Both are used when someone is dissatisfied and speaking under their breath.

囔 is not in the HSK and appears mostly in informal spoken Chinese or literature to describe muttering. Culturally, muttering (嘟囔) is often seen as a sign of complaint or dissatisfaction, and it is considered slightly impolite to mutter openly in front of others.

Common words containing 囔 include: 嘟囔 (dū nāng) — To mumble / To mutter; 囔囔 (nāng nāng) — To mutter; to mumble..