部首radical (欠)部件component (rest of character)书写your drawing
Click the character to replay. Press Try drawing to write it yourself.
字源zìyuánEtymology & Structure
字源洞见 zìyuán dòngjiàn · Etymological Insight
欢 huān = 又 (yòu, hand) + 欠 (qiàn, open mouth). The simplified form pairs the hand element 又 on the left with the radical 欠 on the right. 欠 is the ancient pictograph of a person with the mouth thrown open, the same element that drives a family of words about breath and open-mouthed action: 吹 (to blow), 歌 (to sing), 叹 (to sigh). Here the open mouth is the laugh, and the whole glyph reads as the body breaking into open, audible delight.
The traditional form 歡 is a phonetic compound: the same meaning-element 欠 sits on the right, and on the left the bird-and-eyes element 雚 (guàn) supplies the sound. The simplification kept 欠 for sense and swapped the bulky 雚 for the compact 又, giving the six-stroke 欢 used today. The 欢 / 歡 split is one of the cleaner cases where the radical that carries the meaning stayed put while the phonetic half was traded for a simpler shape.
Three senses branch from the open-mouthed laugh:
1. Joy, merriment. Delight as a felt state and as shared revelry: 欢乐 huānlè (joy), 欢喜 huānxǐ (delighted), 狂欢 kuánghuān (carnival; revelry). 2. To like, to welcome. Pleasure directed at a person or thing: 喜欢 xǐhuan (to like), 欢迎 huānyíng (to welcome). 3. Lively, high-spirited. The brisk, animated quality of a thing in full swing: 欢快 huānkuài (lively), 欢腾 huānténg (jubilant).
The thread is delight that shows: not a quiet inner contentment but joy that opens the mouth, lifts the voice, and spills outward into welcome and celebration.
构词gòucíWord-Formation Patterns
构词规律 gòucí guīlǜ · Joy That Shows欢 as joy / merriment → 欢乐 joy · 欢喜 delighted · 狂欢 revelry · 欢笑 to laugh merrily 欢 as to like / welcome → 喜欢 to like · 欢迎 to welcome · 欢送 to see off warmly 欢 as lively / high-spirited → 欢快 lively · 欢腾 jubilant · 欢呼 to cheer
欢乐huānlèJoy & Merriment
欢乐huānlèjoy; merriment; happy and festive
ADJ 形容词 xíngróngcí
欢 huān (joy) + 乐 lè (happy; glad). Joy of the shared, festive kind: a celebration, a holiday, a crowd in good spirits. 欢乐的气氛 "a joyful atmosphere." More outward and communal than the quiet 高兴.
欢 huān (joy) + 喜 xǐ (glad; to like). Bright, beaming delight, often at good news or a happy event. 满心欢喜 "filled with delight." The 喜 here is the same 喜 of double-happiness at weddings.
听到这个消息，她非常欢喜。
Tīngdào zhège xiāoxi, tā fēicháng huānxǐ.
She was overjoyed to hear the news.
狂欢kuánghuānto revel; carnival; wild celebration
V/N 动名词 dòngmíngcí
狂 kuáng (wild; unrestrained) + 欢 huān (joy). Joy turned up to its loudest: unrestrained revelry. 狂欢节 kuánghuānjié is the standard word for Carnival, and 狂欢 names any wild, all-out celebration.
人们在广场上彻夜狂欢。
Rénmen zài guǎngchǎng shàng chèyè kuánghuān.
People reveled in the square all night long.
辨析 biànxī · 欢乐 vs. 狂欢欢乐 is warm, festive joy that can fill any happy gathering. 狂欢 adds 狂 (wild) and pushes the same joy into unrestrained, often nighttime revelry: a party that loses all reserve, not just a cheerful afternoon.
When 欢 turns outward toward a person or thing, it becomes the joy of welcome. 喜欢 xǐhuan, pairing 欢 with 喜 (glad), is the everyday word for "to like," the very first verb of preference a learner meets: 我喜欢茶 "I like tea." And 欢迎 huānyíng, "joy" plus 迎 (to greet), is the warmth offered to a newcomer: to receive someone gladly. The 欢 supplies the gladness; the second character points it at its object.
The same root opens the door and closes it kindly. 欢迎 greets the arriving guest; 欢送 huānsòng gives the departing one a warm send-off. Both frame coming and going as occasions of shared good feeling, the host meeting the guest with an open, glad face.
喜欢xǐhuanto like; to be fond of; to enjoy
V 动词 dòngcí
喜 xǐ (glad) + 欢 huan (here toneless). The core verb for liking, used of things, activities, and people: 喜欢音乐 "to like music," 喜欢你 "to like you." Stronger than mild approval, lighter than 爱 ài (to love).
欢 huān (joy) + 迎 yíng (to greet; to meet). To receive someone gladly. Also the set greeting 欢迎 "welcome!" and the shop sign 欢迎光临 "welcome, please come in." 受欢迎 shòu huānyíng means "popular; well-liked."
欢迎你来我家。
Huānyíng nǐ lái wǒ jiā.
Welcome to my home.
用法 yòngfǎ · using 欢迎欢迎 works both as a verb and as a standalone greeting. As a verb it takes a guest or an action as its object: 欢迎你 "we welcome you," 欢迎参观 "visitors welcome." On its own it is the bright "welcome!" called out to anyone arriving. The phrase 受欢迎 flips it to a passive sense, "to be welcomed," that is, popular.
欢送huānsòngto see off (warmly); to give a send-off
V 动词 dòngcí
欢 huān (joy) + 送 sòng (to see off). The warm counterpart of 欢迎: to send a departing person off with good feeling, as at a farewell party. 欢送会 huānsònghuì is a send-off gathering.
大家欢送毕业生离校。
Dàjiā huānsòng bìyèshēng lí xiào.
Everyone gave the graduates a warm send-off as they left the school.
欢快huānkuàiLively Spirits
欢快huānkuàilively; cheerful; brisk and light-hearted
ADJ 形容词 xíngróngcí
欢 huān (joy) + 快 kuài (fast; quick). Joy with a quick, light tempo: a brisk and cheerful mood. Often said of music, rhythm, and movement: 欢快的旋律 "a lively melody," 欢快的舞步 "brisk, cheerful dance steps."
小溪欢快地流着。
Xiǎoxī huānkuài de liú zhe.
The brook flowed along merrily.
欢腾huānténgto be jubilant; to seethe with joy
V 动词 dòngcí
欢 huān (joy) + 腾 téng (to leap; to surge). A crowd boiling over with joy, leaping and shouting. Said of stadiums, squares, and whole towns at a great moment: 全场欢腾 "the whole place erupted in jubilation."
The ball went in, and the whole stadium erupted in jubilation at once.
欢呼huānhūto cheer; to hail with joy
V 动词 dòngcí
欢 huān (joy) + 呼 hū (to shout; to call). To shout for joy, the sound a crowd makes in celebration: 欢呼声 "cheers," 人们欢呼雀跃 "people cheered and jumped for joy."
观众为他热烈欢呼。
Guānzhòng wèi tā rèliè huānhū.
The audience cheered for him warmly.
成语chéngyǔIdioms & Set Phrases
欢天喜地huān tiān xǐ dìwild with joy: overjoyed, beside oneself with delightLit: joy-Heaven-glad-Earth, joy that fills the whole sky and ground. Said of someone bursting with happiness at good news, a reunion, or a festival. 一家人欢天喜地过新年 "the family rang in the New Year overjoyed."
皆大欢喜jiē dà huān xǐeveryone is happy: an outcome that pleases all sidesLit: all-greatly-joyful-glad. Originally a closing formula in Buddhist sutras, now the everyday phrase for a resolution where every party comes away satisfied. 结局皆大欢喜 "the ending leaves everyone happy."
欢欣鼓舞huān xīn gǔ wǔelated and inspired: filled with joy and high spiritsLit: joyful-glad-drum-dance, so cheered that one beats the drum and dances. Used of a group lifted and energized by good news or a great event, joy that rouses people to action.
不欢而散bù huān ér sànto part on bad terms: to break up unhappily, the gathering souringLit: not-joyful-and-scatter. The mirror image of the joyful idioms: a meeting or meal that ends in discord, everyone leaving displeased. 两人话不投机，不欢而散 "the two could not agree, and parted on bad terms."
记忆法 jìyìfǎ · Master Retention Image
Picture the open mouth of 欠 on the right, the same mouth that blows in 吹 and sings in 歌, and beside it a hand, 又. Put them together and the body laughs: the mouth flies open and the hand claps. That is the whole feel of 欢, joy that does not stay quiet inside but bursts out loud.
Follow where the laugh points. Aimed at the open air it is festive joy (欢乐, 狂欢). Aimed at a thing you enjoy it is liking (喜欢). Aimed at a guest at the door it is welcome (欢迎). Aimed at a tune or a leaping crowd it is the brisk, high-spirited mood (欢快, 欢腾). Whenever you meet 欢, hear the open-mouthed laugh and ask where it is turned.
相关xiāngguānRelated
Related entries — pages and vocabulary in the neighbourhood of this one