Meaning of 见
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to see
- to meet
- to appear (to be sth)
- to interview
- opinion
- view
- to appear
- also written 現|现[xian4]
How to use 见
On its own 见 (jiàn) often means to meet someone, and it also works as a result ending after verbs of sensing, as in 看见 (kànjiàn) and 听见 (tīngjiàn), to show you actually perceived something. It appears in everyday words like 再见 (zàijiàn) and 意见 (yìjiàn). Example: 明天见。(Míngtiān jiàn.) See you tomorrow.
Look at the top of 见 (jiàn): it is the 冂 shape that also tops 贝, and below it are two legs. Picture a person walking along who is all eyes, so the character means to see.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 见 with 贝 (bèi, shell), which has the same 冂 top but ends in a short dot-like stroke instead of the curving hook. Another trap is using 看 (kàn) when you mean you actually noticed something: 我看了 means I looked, while 我看见了 means I saw it.
见 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.
见 jiàn · to see · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
Related words
Words that share a character with 见.
| 再见 | zàijiàn | goodbye; see you again later |
| 看见 | kànjiàn | to see; to catch sight of |
| 听见 | tīngjiàn | to hear |
| 见面 | jiànmiàn | to meet; to see each other |
| 见到 | jiàndào | to see |
| 意见 | yìjiàn | idea; opinion |
| 见过 | jiànguo | |
| 常见 | cháng jiàn | commonly seen; common |
| 碰见 | pèngjiàn | to run into; to meet (unexpectedly) |
| 遇见 | yùjiàn | to meet |
| 梦见 | mèngjiàn | to dream about (sth or sb); to see in a dream |
| 可见 | kějiàn | it can clearly be seen (that this is the case); it is (thus) clear |
Questions about 见
What does 见 mean?
见 (jiàn) means "to see; to meet" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 见?
见 is made of 1 character: 见 (4 strokes). That is 4 strokes in total.
Is 见 an HSK word?
Yes. 见 is on the HSK 1 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 见 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 见 is written 見.
What is the difference between 看 and 看见?
看 (kàn) is the action of looking, which may or may not succeed. 看见 (kànjiàn) means the seeing actually happened. So you say 我在看 (I am looking) but 我看见他了 (I saw him).
Why is 见 sometimes read xiàn?
In older texts 见 was used for the meaning to appear, read xiàn, which is now written 现. In modern Chinese you will almost always read 见 as jiàn.