75 essential single-character verbs (单字动词)
When I started consuming more native Chinese content, I quickly discovered an area in which my knowledge was lacking: single-character verbs. In my experience, it’s very easy to focus on learning words consisting of two or more characters and overlook single-character words.
Driven by curiosity, I went through my Anki deck (and also wracked my brain) to generate a list of characters/words that I have learned over the past couple years (roughly). Then I selected 75 verbs that are fairly common and important to know. They skew towards intermediate and advanced vocabulary.
Definitions are from MDBG. For characters with additional meanings that I am not yet familiar with, I have bolded the meanings I want to share.
(1) 抢 qiǎng - to fight over / to rush / to scramble / to grab / to rob / to snatch
(2) 救 jiù - to save / to assist / to rescue
(3) 扶 fú - to support with the hand / to help sb up / to support oneself by holding onto something / to help
(4) 催 cuī - to urge / to press / to prompt / to rush sb / to hasten sth / to expedite
(5) 夹 jiā - to press from either side / to place in between / to sandwich / to carry sth under armpit / wedged between / between / to intersperse / to mix / to mingle / clip / folder / Taiwan pr. [jia2]
(6) 咬 yǎo - to bite / to nip
(7) 砸 zá - to smash / to pound / to fail / to muck up / to bungle
(8) 毁 huǐ - to destroy / to ruin / to defame / to slander
(9) 嚷 rǎng - to shout / to bellow / to make a big deal of sth / to make a fuss about sth
(10) 塞 sāi - to stop up / to squeeze in / to stuff / cork / stopper
(11) 贪 tān - to have a voracious desire for / to covet / greedy / corrupt
(12) 拆 chāi - to tear open / to tear down / to tear apart / to open
(13) 掏 tāo - to fish out (from pocket) / to scoop
(15) 摘 zhāi - to take / to borrow / to pick (flowers, fruit etc) / to pluck / to select / to remove / to take off (glasses, hat etc)
(16) 拎 līn - to lift up / to carry in one’s hand / Taiwan pr. [ling1]
(17) 扛 káng - to carry on one’s shoulder / (fig.) to take on (a burden, duty etc)
(18) 拽 zhuài - to pull / to tug at (sth)
(19) 愣 lèng - to look distracted / to stare blankly / distracted / blank / (coll.) unexpectedly / rash / rashly
(20) 搂 lǒu - to hug / to embrace / to hold in one’s arms
(21) 垮 kuǎ - to collapse (lit. or fig.)
(22) 撑 chēng - to support / to prop up / to push or move with a pole / to maintain / to open or unfurl / to fill to bursting point / brace / stay / support
(23) 甩 shuǎi - to throw / to fling / to swing / to leave behind / to throw off / to dump (sb)
(24) 围 wéi - to encircle / to surround / all around / to wear by wrapping around (scarf, shawl)
(25) 愁 chóu - to worry about
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