How to Write 拑 (qián) — Meaning “To clamp / To pinch”

Imagine your hand (扌) clamping something so tight that you taste the sweetness (甘) of the object. The picture of a hand squeezing something sweet helps you recall that 拑 means to clamp or pinch.

Write the left radical 扌 first with three strokes, then the right part 甘 with five strokes. A common mistake is making the two vertical strokes in 甘 too slanted or uneven; keep them straight and parallel for balance.

While 拑 means to clamp or pinch, 托 (tuō) means to hold or support with the palm, and 㧜 is a very rare character. Visually, 拑 has 甘 on the right, while 托 has 乇; their actions are also different — one uses fingers to squeeze, the other uses the palm to lift.

拑 is most often used in formal or literary compounds like 拑制 (to restrain) and 拑口 (to keep one's mouth shut). It is not common in daily conversation, but you may encounter it in classical texts or news articles describing suppression or silent compliance.

Common words containing 拑 include: 拑住 (qián zhù) — To hold tight / To clamp down; 拑口 (qián kǒu) — To keep one's mouth shut; 拑制 (qián zhì) — To restrain / To suppress.