Meaning of 剪刀
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- scissors
Measure word: 把
How to use 剪刀
剪刀 is the everyday word for scissors, and its measure word is 把 (bǎ). In speech you will also hear 剪子 (jiǎnzi), which means the same thing. Example: 请把剪刀给我。(Qǐng bǎ jiǎndāo gěi wǒ.) Please pass me the scissors.
剪刀 (jiǎndāo) is literally a "cutting knife." 剪 (jiǎn) means to cut or clip, and 刀 (dāo) means knife. Notice that 剪 has the knife part 刀 at its bottom, so a cutting tool made of two knife blades is scissors.
Common mistake: Learners often write 剪 as 前 (qián, front) and forget the 刀 at the bottom, or they mix up the tones and say jiàndāo. Also, 剪刀 is only the noun. For the action of cutting, use 剪 (jiǎn) alone, as in 剪头发 (jiǎn tóufa, to cut hair).
剪刀 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.
剪 jiǎn · scissors or similar tool · 11 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
刀 dāo · knife · 2 strokes
- 1
- 2
Related words
Words that share a character with 剪刀.
| 剪子 | jiǎnzi | clippers; scissors |
| 刀子 | dāozi | knife |
| 剪掉 | jiǎndiào | to cut off; to cut away |
| 剪辑 | jiǎnjí | to edit (raw footage: film, video, audio etc); edited version |
| 小刀 | xiǎodāo | knife |
| 修剪 | xiūjiǎn | to prune; to trim |
| 剃刀 | tìdāo | razor |
| 开刀 | kāidāo | (of a surgeon) to perform an operation; (of a patient) to have an operation |
| 刀片 | dāopiàn | blade; razor blade |
| 刺刀 | cìdāo | bayonet |
| 剪头发 | jiǎntóufa | (to get a) haircut |
| 剪断 | jiǎnduàn | to cut; to snip |
Questions about 剪刀
What does 剪刀 mean?
剪刀 (jiǎndāo) means "scissors" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 剪刀?
剪刀 is made of 2 characters: 剪 (11 strokes), 刀 (2 strokes). That is 13 strokes in total.
Is 剪刀 an HSK word?
Yes. 剪刀 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 剪刀 and 剪子?
They both mean scissors. 剪刀 is standard and used in writing and speech everywhere. 剪子 sounds more colloquial and is especially common in northern China.
How do you say rock paper scissors in Chinese?
It is 石头剪刀布 (shítou jiǎndāo bù). People often just say 剪刀石头布 or shout it while playing to decide who goes first.