闷

2 readings · tap one to hear it

stuffy; shut indoors; to smother; to cover tightly

Sound it out + = · + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Phono-semantic compound (形声字)

心 meaning “heart” + 门 sound ( mén )

Components 门心

stuffy · Heisig RSH #2625

门 gate + 心 heart

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

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

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
闷声发大财	mēn shēng fā dà cái	to amass wealth while keeping a low profile (idiom)
生闷气	shēng mèn qì	to seethe; to sulk; to be pissed off (vulgar)
散心解闷	sàn xīn jiě mèn	to divert one's mind from boredom (idiom)
纳闷儿	nà mèn r	erhua variant of 納悶\|纳闷[na4 men4]
闷声不响	mēn shēng bù xiǎng	to keep silent
打闷雷	dǎ mèn léi	(coll.) to wonder secretly; to make wild conjectures
头昏脑闷	tóu hūn nǎo mèn	fainting and giddy; one's head spins
闷闷不乐	mèn mèn bù lè	depressed; sulky; moody; unhappy
闷声闷气	mēn shēng mēn qì	muffled
闷热	mēn rè	sultry; sultriness; hot and stuffy; stifling hot
解闷	jiě mèn	to relieve boredom or melancholy; a diversion
闷酒	mèn jiǔ	alcohol drunk to drown one's sorrows
纳闷	nà mèn	puzzled; bewildered
聊以解闷	liáo yǐ jiě mèn	to use it for the purpose of relieving the tedium to some extent
苦闷	kǔ mèn	depressed; dejected; feeling low
闷雷	mèn léi	muffled thunder; (fig.) sudden shock; blow
消愁解闷	xiāo chóu jiě mèn	lit. to eliminate worry and dispel melancholy (idiom); diversion from boredom; to dispel d…
散闷	sàn mèn	to divert oneself from melancholy
胸闷	xiōng mēn	chest pain; chest distress
排闷	pái mèn	to divert oneself from melancholy

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

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
门 sound part	mén	gate, door, entrance, opening
问	wèn	to ask about, to inquire after
闻	wén	news; to hear, to smell; to make known
们	men	plural marker for pronouns and some nouns
闽	mǐn	Fujian province; a river; a tribe
闰	rùn	intercalary; extra, surplus
蔺	lìn	hay, straw; surname
闵	mǐn	to mourn, to grieve; to incite, to urge on
扪	mén	to stoke, to pat; to grope, to feel
訚	yín	respectful; to speak gently
钔	mén	mendelevium