How to Write 诠 (quán) — Meaning “to explain; to annotate”

Imagine a speaker (讠) standing in front of a completely full (全) blackboard, explaining every detail. The image of 'speech + whole' reminds you that 诠 means 'to explain something completely.'

Start with the speech radical 讠: a dot, then a horizontal fold, then a short horizontal line. For the right part 全, write the top 人 (two strokes like an upside-down V) before the 王 below. A common mistake is making 全 too wide — keep it balanced within the square space.

Unlike 讲 (which just means 'to speak' or 'to say'), 诠 is used for formal interpretation or annotation. Compared to 讳 (meaning 'to avoid mentioning'), 诠 has no negative feeling — it is about clarifying meaning. Visually, 诠 has 全 on the right, while 讲 has 井 and 讳 has 韦.

诠 appears in academic or literary contexts, especially in words like 诠释 (to interpret a theory or text) and 诠注 (annotation). It is not common in everyday conversation but is important for discussing philosophy, literature, or classical works.

Common words containing 诠 include: 诠释 (quán shì) — to interpret; to explain; 诠注 (quán zhù) — annotation; commentary; 真诠 (zhēn quán) — true interpretation; true meaning.