槍 meaning and stroke order
Gun, rife; lance, spear
How to write 槍, stroke by stroke
14 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 槍
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- gun
- firearm
- rifle
- spear
- thing with shape or function similar to a gun
- to substitute for another person in a test
How 槍 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Wood.
木 gives the meaning and 倉 hints at the sound.
Radical: 木 (tree), shared by 388 characters on this site.
How to remember 槍
槍 (qiāng) is a pictophonetic character: 木 (wood) on the left gives the meaning, and 倉 (cāng, granary) on the right gives a similar sound. Picture an old spear with a long wooden shaft, which later became the word for a gun.
Today 槍 mostly means a gun or firearm, and it appears in many common words like 手槍 (shǒuqiāng, pistol) and 開槍 (kāi qiāng, to open fire). It can still mean a spear in historical or martial arts contexts. Example: 他聽到了槍聲。(Tā tīngdào le qiāngshēng.) He heard a gunshot.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 槍 (qiāng) with 搶 (qiǎng, to grab or rob), which has the hand radical 扌 instead of 木 and a third tone. Remember that a gun or spear has a wooden shaft, so it takes 木.
Common words with 槍
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 開槍 | kāi qiāng | to open fire; to shoot a gun | HSK 7-9 |
| 手槍 | shǒuqiāng | pistol | HSK 7-9 |
| 槍斃 | qiāngbì | to execute by firing squad; to shoot dead | HSK 7-9 |
| 槍殺 | qiāngshā | to shoot dead | |
| 槍擊 | qiāngjī | to shoot with a gun; shooting incident | |
| 槍聲 | qiāngshēng | crack; shooting sound | |
| 步槍 | bùqiāng | rifle | |
| 槍支 | qiāngzhī | a gun; guns in general | |
| 槍手 | qiāngshǒu | gunman; sharpshooter | |
| 中槍 | zhòngqiāng | to be hit by a gun; shot | |
| 持槍 | chíqiāng | to carry a gun | |
| 槍戰 | qiāngzhàn | gun battle; firefight | |
| 機槍 | jīqiāng | machine gun | |
| 金槍魚 | jīnqiāngyú | tuna |
Questions about 槍
How many strokes are in 槍?
槍 is written with 14 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 槍 mean?
槍 (qiāng) means gun, rife; lance, spear. A common word with it is 开枪 (kāi qiāng), meaning "to open fire; to shoot a gun".
How do you pronounce 槍?
槍 is pronounced qiāng, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 槍?
The radical of 槍 is 木, which carries the idea of "tree". Dictionaries list 槍 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 槍?
槍 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 枪, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the measure word for 槍?
The most common measure word is 把 (bǎ), as in 一把槍 (yī bǎ qiāng, one gun). For shots fired, use 槍 itself as a verbal measure, as in 開了三槍 (kāi le sān qiāng, fired three shots).
What does 槍手 mean when talking about exams?
槍手 (qiāngshǒu) can mean a gunman, but it also refers to someone who takes a test in place of another person. This comes from the dictionary sense of 槍 meaning to substitute for someone in a test.