Chinese symbol for “gnaw”
啃
kěn
to gnaw; to nibble; to bite
The closest CC-CEDICT match for gnaw is 啃 (kěn), defined as: to gnaw; to nibble; to bite.
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Characters and stroke order
Other Chinese words for “gnaw”
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 啮 (嚙) | niè | to gnaw; to erode |
| 咬啮 (咬嚙) | yǎo niè | to gnaw |
| 咥 | dié | gnaw; bite |
| 咬牙 | yǎo yá | to clench one's teeth; to grind the teeth |
| 啮咬 (齧咬) | niè yǎo | to gnaw |
Related words
Other words that share a character with 啃.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 啃书 (啃書) | kěn shū | lit. to gnaw a book; to study |
| 啃老族 | kěn lǎo zú | (coll.) adults still living with and depending on their parents |
| 嘴啃泥 | zuǐ kěn ní | to fall flat on one's face |
| 啃老 | kěn lǎo | (coll.) to live with and depend on one's parents even upon reaching adulthood |
See also: Japanese symbol for “gnaw”.
Data: CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0); Unihan Database (Unicode License v3); Make Me a Hanzi (Arphic Public License (graphics.txt); LGPL-3.0-or-later (dictionary.txt)); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.