揠 yà to pull up
to pull up; to weed out; to eradicate
How to remember 揠: 扌 hand + 匽 hide away = to pull up. Behind the shed, where he can hide away from dad, an impatient boy grabs the seedlings with one hand to pull up each one so it grows faster.
Component breakdown
揠 = 扌 hand + 匽 hide away
- 扌 hand
- 匽 hide away
Behind the shed, where he can hide away from dad, an impatient boy grabs the seedlings with one hand to pull up each one so it grows faster.
How it is used
- Bound and literary; survives essentially only in 揠苗助长 (yàmiáo-zhùzhǎng) - to pull up seedlings to help them grow, i.e. to ruin things through impatient forcing.
- Same idiom as 拔苗助长. No everyday use.