Chinese word

拿

Pronunciation

Pinyinná

Meaning

  • verbtake

Example

请把桌上的书拿给我。qǐng bǎ zhuō shàng de shū ná gěi wǒ

Please take the book on the table and give it to me.

Illustration for 拿 (take)

More examples

他把杯子拿起来喝了一口。tā bǎ bēi zi ná qǐ lái hē le yì kǒu

He picked up the cup and took a sip.

Core concept

A hand takes control of an object and moves it toward a new place or person.

Common phrases

  • 拿起来ná qǐ lái

    pick up

  • 拿走ná zǒu

    take away

  • 拿给ná gěi

    fetch and give

Similar words

给gěi: Hand an object to another person.
带dài: Take an object along when going to another place.
放fàng: Put an object in a chosen place and leave it there.

Definition in Chinese

用手把东西从一处取到另一处，可指递给别人、拿来或拿走，语义较为口语化且使用广泛。yòng shóu bǎ dōng xī cóng yí chù qǔ dào lìng yí chù kě zhǐ dì gěi bié rén ná lái huò ná zǒu yǔ yì jiào wéi kóu yǔ huà qiě shǐ yòng guǎng fàn

Word origin

The character 拿 (ná, "take") contains 手 (shǒu, "hand") + 合 (hé, "join"), with the hand component pointing to the physical action of taking.

Usage tips

  • Spoken Chinese often adds a direction or recipient to make the movement clear: 拿来 (ná lái, "bring here"), 拿去 (ná qù, "take away"), and 拿给 (ná gěi, "hand to").

Other meanings

  • holdverb
  • grabverb
  • bringverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word