弱

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weak; feeble; young; inferior; not as good as; (following a decimal or fraction) slightly less than

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Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Ideographic compound (会意字)

Two shoots 弓 dying to frost 冫

Components 弓 ×2 冫 ×2

weak · Heisig RSH #1017

弓 bow + ice

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
文弱书生	wén ruò shū shēng	(idiom) frail scholar
体弱多病	tǐ ruò duō bìng	prone to illness; sickly; in fragile health
年老体弱	nián lǎo tǐ ruò	old and weak (idiom)
弱作用力	ruò zuò yòng lì	the weak force (in particle physics)
强将手下无弱兵	qiáng jiàng shǒu xià wú ruò bīng	there are no poor soldiers under a good general (idiom)
弱电统一	ruò diàn tǒng yī	electro-weak interaction in fermion particle physics
弱作用	ruò zuò yòng	(physics) weak interaction
弱肉强食	ruò ròu qiáng shí	(lit.) the weak are prey to the strong (idiom); (fig.) the law of the jungle
弱相互作用	ruò xiāng hù zuò yòng	weak interaction (in particle physics); weak force
弱不禁风	ruò bù jīn fēng	(lit.) too weak to stand up to the wind (idiom); (fig.) extremely delicate; fragile
国弱民穷	guó ruò mín qióng	the country weakened and the people empoverished (idiom)
弱势群体	ruò shì qún tǐ	disadvantaged social groups (e.g. the handicapped); the economically and politically margi…
以弱胜强	yǐ ruò shèng qiáng	using the weak to defeat the strong (idiom); to win from a position of weakness
弱小	ruò xiǎo	small and weak; puny; the small and weak; children; women and children
弱化	ruò huà	weaken; make weaker
体弱	tǐ ruò	debility
薄弱环节	bó ruò huán jié	weak link; loophole
弱点	ruò diǎn	weak point; failing
病弱	bìng ruò	sick and weak; sickly; invalid
色弱	sè ruò	partial color blindness; color weakness

These characters use 弱 as their sound component — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
弱 sound part	ruò	weak, fragile, delicate
溺	nì	to spoil, to pamper, to indulge; to drown
搦	nuò	to grasp, to seize; to challenge, to provoke
蒻	ruò	cattail; young rush