Chinese word

拧

Pronunciation

Pinyinnǐng

Meaning

  • verbtwist

Example

他把水龙头拧开了。tā bǎ shuǐ lóng tóu nǐng kāi le

He twists the faucet to open it.

Illustration for 拧 (twist)

More examples

他用力把螺丝拧紧了。tā yòng lì bǎ luó sī níng jǐn le

He tightened the screw firmly.

Core concept

A hand grips something and turns it, tightening, loosening, or squeezing it through rotational force.

Common phrases

  • 拧开瓶盖níng kāi píng gài

    twist off a bottle cap

  • 拧紧螺丝níng jǐn luó sī

    tighten a screw

  • 拧干衣服níng gàn yī fú

    wring clothes dry

  • 拧坏零件níng huài líng jiàn

    twist a part until it breaks

Similar words

扭niǔ: Twist the body or an object with a sideways or bending motion.
扳bān: Grip a handle or part and use force to move it, often by pulling it toward or away.
捻niǎn: Pinch a small thing between the fingers and roll it to give it a fine twist.

Definition in Chinese

用手抓住物体的一端或表面并用力旋转，常用于拧开盖子、拧紧螺丝或拧干布等动作。yòng shǒu zhuā zhù wù tǐ de yì duān huò biǎo miàn bìng yòng lì xuán zhuǎn cháng yòng yú níng kāi gài zi níng jǐn luó sī huò níng gàn bù děng dòng zuò

Word origin

The character 拧 (níng, "twist") combines 扌 (shǒu, "hand") for a hand action with 宁 (níng, "peace") as a mainly phonetic element.

Usage tips

  • English often uses separate verbs for turning a lid, tightening a screw, and wringing cloth, but Chinese uses this one verb across all three actions.

Other meanings

  • tightenverb
  • wringverb

Opposites

  • 松开sōng kāiloosenverb

Related words

  • 拧紧níng jǐntightenverb
  • 拧动níng dòngturnverb

Word lists with this word