浅 meaning and stroke order
Shallow; light (color)
How to write 浅, stroke by stroke
8 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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- 8
Meaning of 浅
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- shallow
- light (color)
- sound of moving water
How 浅 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Water.
氵 gives the meaning and 戋 hints at the sound.
Radical: 氵 (water), shared by 467 characters on this site.
How to remember 浅
浅 (qiǎn) has the water radical 氵 on the left and 戋 on the right, which gives the sound. Picture water that only covers a thin little layer, so it is shallow.
浅 describes shallow water or depth, light colors like 浅色 (qiǎnsè), and shallow ideas or knowledge, as in 肤浅 (fūqiǎn). Example: 这条河很浅。(Zhè tiáo hé hěn qiǎn.) This river is very shallow.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 浅 with 钱 (qián, money), which shares the same right side 戋 but uses the metal radical 钅 and has a second tone. Remember that 浅 is third tone and relates to water.
Common words with 浅
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
浅 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 浅
How many strokes are in 浅?
浅 is written with 8 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 浅 mean?
浅 (qiǎn) means shallow; light (color). A common word with it is 搁浅 (gēqiǎn), meaning "to run aground; to become stranded; (fig.) to run into difficulties and come to a standsti".
How do you pronounce 浅?
浅 is pronounced qiǎn, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 浅?
The radical of 浅 is 氵, which carries the idea of "water". Dictionaries list 浅 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 浅?
The traditional form of 浅 is 淺. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 浅 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 浅 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 浅 is part of the HSK 4 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the opposite of 浅?
The opposite is 深 (shēn), meaning deep or dark. They pair naturally, as in 深色 (dark color) and 浅色 (light color), or 深浅 (shēnqiǎn), meaning depth.
Does 浅 have another pronunciation?
Yes, it can be read jiān, describing the sound of moving water. This reading is rare and mostly found in classical texts, so in everyday Chinese you will almost always say qiǎn.