ZHIZHI 知止 · LEARN CHINESE DAILY

slow

màn
14 strokes · 忄 (heart radical) + 曼 · HSK 1

Where 慢 comes from

慢 = 忄 (heart) + 曼 (long, drawn-out, for the sound). A heart that takes its time — slow, unhurried. (The same 曼 also gives it an old sense of 'lax / disrespectful', as in 怠慢.)

慢 in Chinese culture

慢 is the opposite of 快: 很慢 (very slow), 慢车 (a slow train). But its warmest use is as a gentle farewell: 慢走 (mànzǒu, 'go slowly') is what a host says to a departing guest — 'take care, don't rush'. 慢慢来 ('take it slow') is comforting advice. Fittingly for an app called 知止, 慢 carries a positive weight in Chinese: slow can mean careful, savoring, unhurried — depth over speed.

Example

慢走 mànzǒu — take care (said to a leaving guest)

请慢慢吃。
Qǐng mànmàn chī.
Please, take your time eating.

How to remember it

A heart (忄) drawn out long (曼) — unhurried, SLOW.

慢走 ('go slowly') is how a host says goodbye — 'take care, no rush'. 慢慢来 ('take it slow') is kind advice. For 知止, 慢 is a virtue: slow means savoring, not lagging.

Same sound, different tones

2nd mán
quite / barbarian
3rd mǎn
full
4th màn
slow

Words unlocked by 慢

很慢 hěn màn
very slow
慢走 mànzǒu
take care / go slowly
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One character a morning · 169-character HSK library · iOS