How to Write 奓 (zhā) — Meaning “to open wide; to spread out”

Imagine a very large person (big, 大) spreading their arms wide, and then another big person stands on their shoulders—two "bigs" stacked (大 above 大) to show something opening even wider. The character looks like a person with arms stretched out, saying "Ah!" (zhā).

Start with the top 大 (write horizontal, left-falling, right-falling), then the bottom 大 below it—same strokes but slightly wider to support the top. Common mistakes include making the top 大 too small or forgetting that both parts are identical; keep the proportions balanced so the character doesn't look lopsided.

奓 (zhā) means "to open wide" and has two 大 stacked. 奁 (lián) means a cosmetic case and contains 大 over 匕 (spoon). 奂 (huàn) means "grand" and contains 大 over 艹 (grass) and 儿 (legs). Visually, 奓 has two identical big radicals, while the others have different lower components.

奓 is not common in everyday speech but appears in words like 奓开 (spread open, e.g., wings) and 奓着 (spreading out). It is also used in dialects for shouting or blustering (奓呼). You may encounter it in classical literature or regional expressions rather than standard Mandarin.

Common words containing 奓 include: 奓开 (zhā kāi) — to spread out; to open wide; 奓着 (zhā zhe) — spreading out; opening wide; 奓呼 (zhā hū) — to shout; to bluster; to make a fuss.