見 meaning and stroke order
To see, to observe, to meet, to appear
How to write 見, stroke by stroke
7 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
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
Meaning of 見
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to see
- to meet
- to appear (to be sth)
- to interview
- opinion
- view
- to appear
- also written 現|现[xian4]
How 見 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A man 儿 with the eye 目 emphasized.
How to remember 見
見 is a person 儿 (legs) with a big eye 目 on top. Picture someone who is all eye, walking around just to see things.
見 is the traditional form, used in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Mainland China writes 见. It often follows a verb to show the result was actually perceived, as in 看見 (kànjiàn) to see and 聽見 (tīngjiàn) to hear. Example: 明天見。(Míngtiān jiàn.) See you tomorrow.
Common mistake: Learners confuse 見 with 貝 (bèi, shell), which also has 目 on top but ends in two short dots instead of the legs 儿. Another trap is using 看 and 看見 interchangeably. 看 means to look, while 看見 means you actually saw something.
Common words with 見
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 再見 | zàijiàn | goodbye; see you again later | HSK 1 |
| 看見 | kànjiàn | to see; to catch sight of | HSK 1 |
| 聽見 | tīngjiàn | to hear | HSK 1 |
| 見面 | jiànmiàn | to meet; to see each other | HSK 1 |
| 見到 | jiàndào | to see | HSK 2 |
| 意見 | yìjiàn | idea; opinion | HSK 2 |
| 見過 | jiànguo | HSK 2 | |
| 常見 | cháng jiàn | commonly seen; common | HSK 2 |
| 碰見 | pèngjiàn | to run into; to meet (unexpectedly) | HSK 2 |
| 遇見 | yùjiàn | to meet | HSK 4 |
| 夢見 | mèngjiàn | to dream about (sth or sb); to see in a dream | HSK 4 |
| 可見 | kějiàn | it can clearly be seen (that this is the case); it is (thus) clear | HSK 4 |
| 只見 | zhǐ jiàn | to see (the same thing) over and over again; to see, to one's surprise, (sth happen sudden | HSK 5 |
| 不見 | bùjiàn | not to see; not to meet | HSK 6 |
Characters that contain 見
Learning 見 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 見
How many strokes are in 見?
見 is written with 7 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 見 mean?
見 (jiàn) means to see, to observe, to meet, to appear. A common word with it is 再见 (zàijiàn), meaning "goodbye; see you again later".
How do you pronounce 見?
見 is pronounced jiàn, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the simplified form of 見?
見 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 见, used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the difference between 見面 and 見 a person?
見面 (jiànmiàn) cannot take an object directly. You say 跟他見面 (gēn tā jiànmiàn), not 見面他. With plain 見 you can say 見他 (jiàn tā) to see him.
Why is 見 sometimes read xiàn?
In older texts 見 was also used for the meaning to appear, read xiàn. Today that meaning is written 現 (xiàn), so you will mostly see the xiàn reading in classical Chinese and set phrases.