拉 lā — to pull; to play (string instruments); to drag; to draw
他用力拉开了大门。Tā yòng lì lā kāi le dà mén.He pulled the gate open with force.
Common words: 拉开 (lā kāi)、拉拢 (lā lǒng)、易拉罐 (yì lā guàn)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to play"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to play", including 拉 (lā), 演 (yǎn), 玩 (wán / wàn), 顽 (wán). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to play" covers 4 different Chinese characters — 拉 (lā), 演 (yǎn), 玩 (wán / wàn), 顽 (wán) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 4 characters do not share a sound — their readings span lā, yǎn, wán, wàn — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 拉 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 拉 lāto pull; to play (string instruments); to drag; to drawUseful words: 拉开, 拉拢
- 演 yǎnto develop; to evolve; to practice; to perform; to play; to actUseful words: 表演, 演出
- 玩 wán / wàncurios; antiques; to play; to amuse oneself; curios; antiquesUseful words: 开玩笑, 玩儿
- 顽 wánmischievous; obstinate; to play; stupid; stubborn; naughtyUseful words: 顽强, 顽固
Common words for these 4 "to play" characters
Anchor each of these 4 characters in a word you can picture — start with 拉 (lā) — so "to play" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
拉开lā kāito pull open; to pull apart; to space out; to increase拉拢lā lǒngto rope in; fig. to involve sb; to entice易拉罐yì lā guànpull-top can; easy-open can (with ring-pull)表演biǎo yǎnplay; show; performance; exhibition演出yǎn chūto act (in a play); to perform; to put on (a performance); performance演员yǎn yuánactor; actress; performer开玩笑kāi wán xiàoto play a joke; to make fun of; to joke玩儿wán rto play; to have fun; to hang out好玩儿hǎo wán rcolloquial (-r) form of 好玩顽强wán qiángtenacious; hard to defeat
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 4 ways to say "to play".
演 yǎn — to develop; to evolve; to practice; to perform; to play; to act
这位演员的表演十分精彩。Zhè wèi yǎn yuán de biǎo yǎn shí fēn jīng cǎi.This actor performance is wonderful.
Common words: 表演 (biǎo yǎn)、演出 (yǎn chū)、演员 (yǎn yuán)
玩 wán / wàn — curios; antiques; to play; to amuse oneself; curios; antiques
孩子们在公园里玩得很开心。Hái zi men zài gōng yuán lǐ wán de hěn kāi xīn.The children are playing happily in the park.
Common words: 开玩笑 (kāi wán xiào)、玩儿 (wán r)、好玩儿 (hǎo wán r)
顽 wán — mischievous; obstinate; to play; stupid; stubborn; naughty
不管遇到什么困难，他都顽强地坚持着。Bù guǎn yù dào shén me kùn nán, tā dōu wán qiáng de jiān chí zhe.No matter what difficulty he faces, he perseveres tenaciously.
Common words: 顽强 (wán qiáng)、顽固 (wán gù)、顽皮 (wán pí)
All 4 characters
Open 拉、演、玩 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.