挣 zhēng to struggle
to struggle; to strive; to endeavor
怎么记住“挣”: 扌 hand + 争 contend = to struggle. The climber grips the rock with a bleeding hand, has to contend with the icy wind, and finds the will to struggle on.
部件结构
形声 · Meaning + sound
One part gives the meaning, the other gives the sound.
挣 = 扌 hand + 争 contend
- 扌 hand meaning
- 争 contend sound
- ⺈ knife top
- 彐 snout
- 亅 hook
The climber grips the rock with a bleeding hand, has to contend with the icy wind, and finds the will to struggle on.
How it came to be
The hand gives the meaning and the sign for contending gives the sound.
用法
- Polyphone: zhēng for "struggle": 挣扎 zhēngzhá "to struggle," physically or against hardship.
- zhèng for "earn": 挣钱 zhèngqián "to earn money," one of the most common everyday verbs about work.
- Learner trap: 挣钱 is zhèngqián, not zhēngqián, the earning sense and the struggling sense have different tones.