仙 meaning and stroke order
God; fairy; immortal, transcendent
How to write 仙, stroke by stroke
5 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
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- 5
Meaning of 仙
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- immortal
- variant of 仙[xian1]
How 仙 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Person.
亻 gives the meaning and 山 hints at the sound.
Radical: 亻 (man), shared by 277 characters on this site.
How to remember 仙
仙 is a person 亻 standing beside a mountain 山. Picture a hermit who has climbed into the mountains and become an immortal. The data lists 山 as the sound part, but the picture works well as a memory aid.
仙 appears mostly in compounds about immortals, fairies and dreamlike places, such as 神仙 (shénxiān) and 仙境 (xiānjìng). People also use it in praise of beauty or elegance. Example: 她美得像仙女。(Tā měi de xiàng xiānnǚ.) She is as beautiful as a fairy.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes confuse 仙 (xiān) with 山 (shān) because they share the mountain part. The tone is first tone, and the initial is x, not sh. Also note that 仙人掌 (xiānrénzhǎng) means cactus, not an immortal's palm in everyday speech.
Common words with 仙
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 仙女 | xiānnǚ | fairy | HSK 7-9 |
| 神仙 | shénxiān | Daoist immortal; supernatural entity | HSK 7-9 |
| 仙鹤 | xiānhè | red-crowned crane (Grus japonensis) | HSK 7-9 |
| 仙子 | xiānzǐ | fairy | |
| 仙人掌 | xiānrénzhǎng | cactus | |
| 仙境 | xiānjìng | fairyland; wonderland | |
| 仙人 | xiānrén | Daoist immortal; celestial being | |
| 欲仙欲死 | yùxiānyùsǐ | to experience sheer ecstasy (or, when used ironically, sheer hell) |
仙 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 仙
How many strokes are in 仙?
仙 is written with 5 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 仙 mean?
仙 (xiān) means god; fairy; immortal, transcendent. A common word with it is 仙女 (xiānnǚ), meaning "fairy".
How do you pronounce 仙?
仙 is pronounced xiān, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 仙?
The radical of 仙 is 亻, which carries the idea of "man". Dictionaries list 仙 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 仙?
The traditional form of 仙 is 僊. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 仙 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 仙 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 仙 is part of the HSK 7-9 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 神 and 仙?
神 (shén) usually means a god or deity, often one who was always divine. 仙 (xiān) traditionally refers to an immortal, often a person who reached immortality through Daoist practice. Together, 神仙 (shénxiān) is a general word for supernatural beings.
Is 仙 used in modern slang?
Yes. Online, 仙 can describe something ethereal or stunningly beautiful, as in 好仙 (hǎo xiān), meaning very fairy-like. 仙女 (xiānnǚ) is also used playfully to address or describe young women.