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捻

Mandarin · pinyin niǎn

to twirl (in the fingers)

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捻: niǎn · to twist or nip with the fingers

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

3 · nian3

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1character link11same-tone records

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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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Rime Cantonese 粵拼

nan2 · nim1 · nim2 · nim5 · nin2 · nip6

Cantonese word readings for 捻. 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

(alt. form 拈, 撚) to pinch or twist into a string-like form with the fingers
(Central Plains Mandarin, synecdochic) a gang or group of people
(Quanzhou Hokkien, vulgar) stingy; miserly

character

(alt-of, alternative) alternative form of 捏 (niē)

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

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