Dictionary › 沉

沉

chén

HSK 5 Character

What 沉 means

1. to submerge
2. to immerse
3. to sink
4. to keep down
5. to lower
6. to drop
7. deep
8. profound
9. heavy

Other readings

沉 is 多音字 — it is read more than one way, and the reading changes the meaning.

• chénvariant of {沉|chén}

Example sentences

• 它沉了。
  It sank.
• 沉默是金。
  Chénmòshìjīn.
  Silence is golden.
• 这床很沉。
  This bed is heavy.
• 我们保持了沉默。
  We kept quiet.
• 她沉迷于摇滚乐。
  She is absorbed in rock music.
• 我感觉昏沉沉的。
  I feel lethargic.

Words starting with 沉

• 沉默chén mòtaciturn; uncommunicative; silent
• 沉重chén zhòngheavy; hard; serious
• 沉思chén sīto contemplate; to ponder; contemplation
• 沉闷chén mènoppressive (of weather); heavy; depressed
• 沉着chén zhuósteady; calm and collected; not nervous
• 沉淀chén diàn(chemistry) to settle; to precipitate; (chemistry) sediment; precipitate…
• 沉浸chén jìnto soak; to permeate; to immerse
• 沉寂chén jìsilence; stillness
• 沉静chén jìngpeaceful; quiet; calm
• 沉睡chén shuìto be fast asleep; (fig.) to lie dormant; to lie undiscovered
• 沉醉chén zuìto become intoxicated
• 沉吟chén yínto mutter to oneself irresolutely
• 沉迷chén míto be engrossed; to be absorbed with; to lose oneself in
• 沉稳chén wěnsteady; calm; unflustered
• 沉沉chén chéndeeply; heavily
• 沉甸甸chén diàn diànheavy
• 沉没chén mòto sink
• 沉沦chén lúnto sink into (vice, depravity etc); to pass into oblivion; downfall; passing
• 沉痛chén tònggrief; remorse; deep in sorrow
• 沉溺chén nì(fig.) to indulge in; to wallow in (addiction, vice etc); (literary) to sink into water
• 沉默寡言chén mò guǎ yánhabitually silent (idiom); reticent; uncommunicative
• 沉浮chén fúlit. sinking and floating; to bob up and down on water; ebb and flow
• 沉积chén jīsediment; deposit; sedimentation (geology)
• 沉船chén chuánshipwreck; sunken boat; sinking ship

Words containing 沉

• 深沉shēn chéndeep; profound; (of a person) reserved
• 低沉dī chén(of weather) overcast; gloomy; (of a voice) low and deep; low-spirited; downcast
• 阴沉yīn chéngloomy
• 下沉xià chénto sink down
• 消沉xiāo chénto sink into despondency; (of morale, willpower etc) to diminish; to plummet
• 昏昏沉沉hūn hūn chén chén(idiom) dizzy
• 阴沉沉yīn chén chéndark (weather, mood)
• 浮沉fú chénups and downs (of life etc); to drift along; to sink and emerge
• 死气沉沉sǐ qì chén chéndead atmosphere; lifeless; spiritless
• 石沉大海shí chén dà hǎilit. to throw a stone and see it sink without trace in the sea (idiom)…
• 破釜沉舟pò fǔ chén zhōulit. to break the cauldrons and sink the boats (idiom)…
• 黑沉沉hēi chén chénpitch-dark
• 昏沉hūn chénmurky; dazed; befuddled
• 击沉jī chénto attack and sink (a ship)
• 翻沉fān chénto capsize and sink
• 自沉zì chénto scuttle (a ship); to drown oneself
• 血沉xuè chénerythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR)
• 西沉xī chén(of the sun) to set
• 下沉市场xià chén shì chǎngthe Chinese market, excluding first- and second-tier cities
• 故作深沉gù zuò shēn chénto play the profound thinker
• 海相沉积物hǎi xiāng chén jī wùoceanic sediment (geology)
• 血色素沉积症xuè sè sù chén jī zhènghemochromatosis
• 红细胞沉降率hóng xì bāo chén jiàng lǜerythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR)
• 有沉有浮yǒu chén yǒu fúto have one's ups and downs

Characters that look like 沉

Easy to confuse on sight. Compare them side by side once and the pair stops costing you.

• 犹yóuas if; (just) like; just as
• 沈shěn(literary) juice
• 拢lǒngto gather together; to collect; to approach; to draw near to; to add; to sum up
• 妩wǔused in 妩媚
• 沅YuánYuan river in Guizhou and Hunan
• 泷lóngrapids; waterfall; torrential (rain)

Sounds the same

Read chén, tone for tone, but written differently.

• 尘dust; dirt; earth
• 陈(bound form) to lay out; to exhibit; to display; (bound form) to narrate; to state…
• 晨morning; dawn; daybreak
• 臣state official or subject in dynastic China; I, your servant…
• 辰5th earthly branch: 7-9 a.m., 3rd solar month (5th April-4th May), year of the Dragon…
• 宸imperial apartments
• 忱sincerity; honesty
• 谌faithful; sincere
• 蔯a variety of artemisia
• 梣Chinese ash (Fraxinus chinensis)
• 茞fragrant plant; angelica
• 煁brazier