灌

• Pinyin: guàn
• Hanzi breakdown: 灌 = 氵(water) + 雚 (phonetic — heron near water, suggesting pouring)

Meaning

To pour into; to irrigate; to fill by pouring. Describes introducing liquid into a container or field, or metaphorically forcing information or ideas into someone.

Appears in agricultural contexts (灌溉 — irrigate), audio recording (灌录 — to record an album), and critical education discourse (灌输 — instil/pour in, implying top-down instruction). 灌 alone can describe force-feeding or pouring drink into someone.

Examples

1. 农民每天清晨起来灌地，确保庄稼有充足的水分。 Every morning at dawn, the farmers irrigate the fields to make sure the crops have enough water.
2. 他把满满一杯水一口气灌下去，才缓解了干渴。 He gulped down a full glass of water in one go, and the thirst finally eased.
3. 老师不应只是一味地向学生灌知识，更要引导他们主动思考。 Teachers shouldn’t just pour knowledge into students—they should guide them to think for themselves.

Usage Guide

Context: agriculture, daily life, education

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 每逢旱季，村民们便轮流用水泵灌田，以保全当季的收成。(Every dry season, villagers take turns using water pumps to irrigate the fields, in order to preserve the seasonal harvest.)
• 他喝多了，朋友硬是给他灌了好几杯浓茶才让他清醒过来。(He had drunk too much, and his friend forcibly poured several cups of strong tea into him before he sobered up.)

Don't Say

• 我灌了一本书 — use 读完 or 录制 depending on context; 灌 is for pouring liquid or recording audio, not reading or absorbing a book passively

Origin & History

Water radical 氵+ 雚 (phonetic component, also a heron bird — once used for tall water plants near rivers). Original meaning related to water pouring.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal