How to Write 夋 (qūn) — Meaning “To move slowly / To dawdle (archaic)”

Imagine a man (允) who is walking so slowly that his legs are like noodles (夂). He looks like he is taking tiny, hesitant steps, which reminds you that 夋 means to move slowly or dawdle.

Start with the top radical 夂: write the left-falling stroke, then the horizontal stroke, and finally the downward hook. Then write 允: left-falling stroke, then the hook below. A common mistake is making the top radical too large—keep it small so the bottom part 允 is dominant.

夋 has the radical 夂 on top with 允 below, while 冬 has 夂 on top with two dots (冫) below, meaning 'winter'. 处 has 夂 on the left and a box-like component (卜) on the right, meaning 'place'. Focus on the bottom part to distinguish them.

夋 is almost never used alone in modern Chinese—only appears in ancient texts or in the word 夋夋 (qūn qūn) to describe slow walking or hesitation. It is not in HSK, so most learners encounter it only when studying classical literature or archaic terms.

Common words containing 夋 include: 夋夋 (qūn qūn) — Walking slowly / Hesitating; 夋兔 (qūn tù) — Fast rabbit (archaic term); 夋足 (qūn zú) — To move one's feet slowly.