賤 meaning and stroke order
Cheap, low, mean, worthless
How to write 賤, stroke by stroke
15 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 賤
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- inexpensive
- lowly
- despicable
- (bound form) (humble) my
How 賤 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. Costing little 戔 money 貝; 戔 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 貝 (sea shell), shared by 62 characters on this site.
How to remember 賤
賤 is built from 貝 (shell, an old symbol of money) and 戔 (small, little). Little money means something is cheap, and from there the meaning grew to lowly or worthless. 戔 also hints at the sound jiàn.
賤 (simplified 贱) can mean inexpensive, but in everyday speech it more often describes people or behavior as lowly or contemptible. Many words built on it are strong insults, such as 贱人 (jiànrén). Example: 这件衣服卖得很贱。(Zhè jiàn yīfu mài de hěn jiàn.) This piece of clothing is sold very cheaply.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 賤 with 錢 (qián, money) and 淺 (qiǎn, shallow), since all three share 戔. Check the left side: 貝 for cheap, 金 for money, 氵 for shallow. Also be careful with 贱人 and 贱货, which are harsh insults and not neutral words for cheap.
Common words with 賤
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 賤人 | jiànrén | slut; cheap person | |
| 賤貨 | jiànhuò | bitch; slut | |
| 下賤 | xiàjiàn | humble; lowly | |
| 低賤 | dījiàn | lowly; humble; cheap; inexpensive | |
| 卑賤 | bēijiàn | lowly; mean and low | |
| 賤民 | jiànmín | social stratum below the level of ordinary people; untouchable |
Characters that contain 賤
Learning 賤 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 賤
How many strokes are in 賤?
賤 is written with 15 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 賤 mean?
賤 (jiàn) means cheap, low, mean, worthless. A common word with it is 贱人 (jiànrén), meaning "slut; cheap person".
How do you pronounce 賤?
賤 is pronounced jiàn, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 賤?
The radical of 賤 is 貝, which carries the idea of "sea shell". Dictionaries list 賤 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 賤?
賤 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 贱, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Should I use 賤 to say something is cheap when shopping?
Usually no. In normal shopping talk people say 便宜 (piányi). Using 賤 for prices sounds old-fashioned or literary, and the word carries negative feelings about people.
What is the opposite of 賤?
The classic opposite is 貴 (guì), meaning expensive or noble. The pair appears in expressions like 貴賤 (guìjiàn), meaning high and low social status or expensive and cheap.