冉 is also the simplified spelling of 冄.

冉

Mandarin · pinyin rǎn#

Meanings · rǎn

  1. edge of a tortoiseshell
  2. used in 冉冉 rǎn rǎn
Mandarin · pinyin Rǎn#

Meanings · Rǎn

  1. surname Ran
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Characters in this entry

冉
rǎn · tender; weak; proceed gradually
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

3 · ran3

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Rime · Wiktionary

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jim5

Cantonese word readings for 冉. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

character

  1. (archaic) edge of a turtle shell
  2. (ideophonic) used in 冉冉 (rǎnrǎn, “slowly; hanging down loosely; permeating the air”)
  3. (obsolete) tender; weak
  4. a surname

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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