(jiàn) - sword in Mandarin
jiànTraditional: 劍
Translation
sword
Word origin
A phono-semantic character: the knife radical 刂 gives the meaning of a blade, and 佥 (qiān) supplies the sound.
- Origin
- phono-semantic
- Root
- 刂 (knife radical) + 佥 (qiān, phonetic)
Stroke order
剑
Examples
墙。
An old sword hangs on the wall.
。
He has trained with the sword since childhood.
。
That sword is very heavy.
拔。
The knight drew his sword.
。
A sword is longer and straighter than a knife.
剑 (jiàn) is a sword, specifically the straight double-edged kind carried by scholars, knights and immortals. It is counted with 把: 一把剑.
The word is soaked in culture. 剑 is the weapon of the martial arts hero and the Daoist swordsman, it gives 剑术 (swordsmanship) and 击剑 (fencing), and it shows up in idioms such as 唇枪舌剑, a duel fought with words.
The trap is 刀. English lumps blades together, Chinese does not: 刀 is single-edged, curved or broad, and covers the kitchen knife and the sabre alike; 剑 is straight and double-edged. Ask for a 剑 at dinner and you will get a very strange look.
Where this fits
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剑: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "剑" (sword): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 46.