玩

Tap the pinyin to hear it

to play; to have fun; to trifle with; toy; sth used for amusement; curio or antique (Taiwan pr. [wan4]); to keep sth for entertainment

Sound it out + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Phono-semantic compound (形声字)

王 meaning “jade” + 元 sound ( yuán )

Components 王元

play · Heisig RSH #270

元 beginning + ball

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

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

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
好玩儿	hǎo wán r	erhua variant of 好玩[hao3 wan2]
玩儿	wán r	to play; to have fun; to hang out
开玩笑	kāi wán xiào	to play a joke; to make fun of; to joke
玩儿不转	wán r bù zhuàn	can't handle it; can't find any way (of doing sth); not up to the task
玩家角色	wán jiā jué sè	player character (in a role-playing game)
玩儿得转	wán r dé zhuàn	can handle it; up to the task
游山玩水	yóu shān wán shuǐ	to go on a scenic tour
性玩物	xìng wán wù	sex object; sexual plaything
玩意儿	wán yì r	erhua variant of 玩意[wan2 yi4]
小玩意	xiǎo wán yì	gadget; widget (small item of software)
玩不起	wán bu qǐ	can't afford to play; (fig.) can't accept it when one loses
说着玩儿	shuō zhe wán r	erhua variant of 說著玩\|说着玩[shuo1 zhe5 wan2]
玩儿命	wán r mìng	to gamble with life; to take reckless risks
玩儿花招	wán r huā zhāo	to play tricks
电动玩具	diàn dòng wán jù	battery-powered toy; (Tw) video game; computer game
玩儿票	wán r piào	amateur dramatics
玩家	wán jiā	player (of a game); enthusiast (audio, model planes etc)
电玩	diàn wán	video game
玩法	wán fǎ	to play fast and loose with the law; to game the system; (leisure) rules of the game; way …
文玩	wén wán	object valued for aesthetic appreciation; objet d'art

Characters sharing the sound component 元 — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
元 sound part	yuán	first; dollar; origin; head
远	yuǎn	distant, remote, far; profound
园	yuán	garden, park; orchard
完	wán	to complete, to finish, to settle; whole
顽	wán	stubborn, recalcitrant, obstinate
沅	yuán	a river in western Hunan
阮	ruǎn	ancient musical instrument; surname
芫	yuán	a poisonous plant; Daphne genkwa
朊	ruǎn	protein
蚖	yuán	salamander, newt
鼋	yuán	large turtle, sea turtle