扼腕
è​wàn

wring one's hands

扼 è grasp

Phonosemantic compound. 扌 represents the meaning and 厄 represents the sound. Simplified form of 搤.

Components

扌
扌 Meaning component
shou, shǒu hand

扌 is a component form of 手.

厄
厄 Sound component
è adversity, distress

Character Evolution

Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Old Chinese
Zhengzhangqreːɡ

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Zhengzhang Shangfang
Historical images
Academia Sinica

腕 wàn wrist

Phonosemantic compound. ⺼ represents the meaning and 宛 represents the sound.

Components

⺼
⺼ Meaning component
ròu meat, flesh

⺼ is a component form of 肉.

宛
宛 Sound component
wǎn, yuān, yǔn winding

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld Chinese
Zhengzhangqoːns
Unicodequɑ̀n

Sources

Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Zhengzhang Shangfang