转变
zhuǎnbiàn · HSK 3
change
🔄 转 = turn/rotate + 变 = change; together: a turning change → transform
转 means to turn or rotate (think of a wheel spinning); 变 means to change or alter. Combined, 转变 names a turning-point change — a shift or transformation from one state into another.
转 — car radical 车 + 专 (phonetic)
转 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left side 车 (cart/wheel) gives the meaning, evoking something that turns or rotates like a wheel. The right side 专 supplies the sound. Originally referring to the turning of a cart's wheels, it broadened to mean 'turn,' 'rotate,' or 'shift' in general.
变 — top 䜌 (phonetic) + bottom 又 (hand)
Originally written 變, a phonosemantic compound: 䜌 (luán) gives the sound while 攵 (a hand with a stick) suggested the action of changing or transforming. The simplified form 变 keeps the phonetic top in reduced shape over 又 (hand). Core meaning: to change, transform, or alter.