Meaning of 船
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- boat
- vessel
- ship
Measure word: 條|条,艘,隻|只
- variant of 船[chuan2]
How to use 船
船 is the everyday word for any boat or ship, and it also appears in compounds like 轮船 (lúnchuán, steamship) and 飞船 (fēichuán, spaceship). The measure word is usually 条 (tiáo) or 艘 (sōu). Example: 我们坐船去小岛。(Wǒmen zuò chuán qù xiǎo dǎo.) We are taking a boat to the small island.
The left side 舟 (zhōu) is an old character for a small boat, so it tells you the meaning. On the right, picture 八 (eight) people above a 口 (mouth, opening) of the hull: eight passengers riding in a boat.
Common mistake: Learners often write the left side as 月 or 丹 instead of 舟, or forget the small dot strokes inside 舟. Also say 坐船 (zuò chuán) for riding a boat, not 骑船 or 开船 unless you are the one driving it.
船 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.
船 chuán · boat · 11 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 船.
| 划船 | huáchuán | to row a boat; rowing; boating |
| 轮船 | lúnchuán | steamship; steamer; steamboat |
| 船长 | chuánzhǎng | captain (of a boat); skipper |
| 飞船 | fēichuán | spaceship; spacecraft |
| 船员 | chuányuán | sailor; crew member |
| 船只 | chuánzhī | ship; boat |
| 帆船 | fānchuán | sailboat |
| 渔船 | yúchuán | fishing boat |
| 船舶 | chuánbó | shipping; boats |
| 船桨 | chuánjiǎng | oar |
| 游船 | yóuchuán | pleasure boat; cruise ship |
| 水涨船高 | shuǐzhǎng-chuángāo | the tide rises, the boat floats (idiom); fig. to change with the overall trend; to develop |
Questions about 船
What does 船 mean?
船 (chuán) means "boat; vessel" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 船?
船 is made of 1 character: 船 (11 strokes). That is 11 strokes in total.
Is 船 an HSK word?
Yes. 船 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 船 and 舟?
船 (chuán) is the normal modern word for a boat or ship. 舟 (zhōu) is literary and mostly appears in idioms, poetry, and set words like 龙舟 (lóngzhōu, dragon boat).
How do you say seasick in Chinese?
Seasick is 晕船 (yùnchuán), literally dizzy from the boat. For example, 我晕船。(Wǒ yùnchuán.) means I get seasick.