(xiàn) - line, thread, wire in Mandarin
xiànTraditional: 線
Translation
line, thread, wire
Word origin
A phono-semantic character: the silk radical 纟gives the meaning of thread, while the right-hand element supplies the sound, 戋 (jiān) in the simplified form and 泉 (quán) in the traditional 線.
- Origin
- compound
- Root
- 纟 (silk) + 戋 (jiān, phonetic); traditional 線 uses 泉 (quán) as phonetic
Stroke order
线
Examples
沿。
Please walk along this line.
。
The telephone line has been cut.
红缝扣。
She sewed the button on with red thread.
。
This line on the map is the border.
。
Do not pull the wire too tight.
线 (xiàn) covers what English splits across three words: a drawn line, a sewing thread, and an electrical or telephone wire. The measure word for all three is 条: 一条线, 两条电线.
It is productive in compounds, and this is where you will meet it most. 线索 is a clue or a lead in an investigation, 路线 is a route, 电线 is a cable, 无线 is wireless, 在线 is online, 底线 is a bottom line in the figurative sense English shares.
One thing to watch: the traditional form is 線, with 泉 on the right, not the simplified 戋. Taiwanese and Hong Kong text will use 線 throughout. And note the tone is fourth, xiàn, which keeps it apart from 现 (xiàn, now) only by context, since the two are homophones.
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线: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "线" (line, thread, wire): 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 43.