剑 meaning in English
double-edged sword; classifier for blows of a sword
Meaning of 剑
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- double-edged sword
- classifier for blows of a sword
Measure word: 口,把
- variant of 劍|剑[jian4]
How to use 剑
剑 (jiàn) means a double-edged sword, often in martial arts stories, history, and games. It also appears in sports, as in 击剑 (jījiàn, fencing). Example: 他练了十年剑术。(Tā liàn le shí nián jiànshù.) He has practiced swordsmanship for ten years.
The left part 佥 (qiān) looks like a roof over people, and the right side 刂 is the knife radical. Picture a group gathered under a roof admiring a long blade, a sword.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 剑 (jiàn) with 检 (jiǎn, to check) and 险 (xiǎn, danger), which share the same 佥 part. Remember that only 剑 has the knife radical 刂 on the right, and its tone is fourth, not third.
剑 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
剑 jiàn · double-edged sword · 9 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 剑.
Questions about 剑
What does 剑 mean?
剑 (jiàn) means "double-edged sword; classifier for blows of a sword" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 剑?
剑 is made of 1 character: 剑 (9 strokes). That is 9 strokes in total.
Is 剑 an HSK word?
Yes. 剑 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 剑 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 剑 is written 劍.
What is the difference between 刀 (dāo) and 剑 (jiàn)?
刀 is a single-edged blade, like a knife or saber. 剑 is a straight double-edged sword. The compound 刀剑 (dāojiàn) covers bladed weapons in general.
What does the idiom 刻舟求剑 mean?
It tells of a man who dropped his sword from a boat and marked the boat's side to find it later. It describes someone who acts rigidly and ignores how circumstances have changed.