TraceHanzi

鍵 meaning and stroke order

jiàn

Lock, door bolt; key

16 strokesRadical 釒Simplified 键
Strokes16
Pinyinjiàn
ToneTone 4
Frequency#3,695
Printable worksheet

How to write 鍵, stroke by stroke

16 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. 1
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Meaning of 鍵

Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.

jiànfourth tone (falling)
  1. key (on a piano or computer keyboard)
  2. button (on a mouse or other device)
  3. chemical bond
  4. linchpin

How 鍵 is built

Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Metal.

jīngold+jiànto establish

釒 gives the meaning and 建 hints at the sound.

Radical: 釒 (gold), shared by 135 characters on this site.

How to remember 鍵

鍵 is metal 釒 on the left plus 建 (jiàn, build) on the right, which gives the sound. Think of a metal piece built into a lock or a machine: a bolt, a key, a button.

Today 鍵 (jiàn) mostly means a key or button you press, as in 键盘 (jiànpán, keyboard) and 按键 (ànjiàn, button). It is also very common in 关键 (guānjiàn, crucial point). Example: 这是问题的关键。(Zhè shì wèntí de guānjiàn.) This is the crux of the problem.

Common mistake: Learners often write the key for a door as 鍵, but a door key is 钥匙 (yàoshi). 鍵 is for keys you press, like on a keyboard or piano. Also do not confuse it with 健 (jiàn, healthy), which has the person radical 亻 instead of metal.

Common words with 鍵

Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.

WordPinyinMeaningLevel
關鍵guānjiàncrucial point; cruxHSK 5
鍵盤jiànpánkeyboardHSK 5
按鍵ànjiànbutton or key (on a device); keystrokeHSK 7-9
關鍵詞guānjiàncíkeyword

Questions about 鍵

How many strokes are in 鍵?

鍵 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.

What does 鍵 mean?

鍵 (jiàn) means lock, door bolt; key. A common word with it is 关键 (guānjiàn), meaning "crucial point; crux".

How do you pronounce 鍵?

鍵 is pronounced jiàn, in the fourth tone (falling).

What is the radical of 鍵?

The radical of 鍵 is 釒, which carries the idea of "gold". Dictionaries list 鍵 under this radical.

What is the simplified form of 鍵?

鍵 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 键, used in mainland China and Singapore.

How do you say 'press a key' in Chinese?

You can say 按键 (àn jiàn) or 按一下这个键 (àn yíxià zhège jiàn), press this key. For a keyboard shortcut, people say 快捷键 (kuàijiéjiàn).

What does 鍵 mean in chemistry?

In chemistry 鍵 means a chemical bond, as in 化学键 (huàxuéjiàn, chemical bond). This links back to the idea of a bolt that holds things together.