剑 jiàn — sword · English

剑

jiàn

sword

At a glance · 剑

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Evolution of the glyph

Five stages, from a sketch of the real object to regular script — tap a stage, drag the timeline, or play the animation.

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seen
Oracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCE
Seal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCE
Clerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CE
Regular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

Object sketchBefore writing · drawing what was seenOracle boneShang dynasty · c. 1300–1046 BCESeal scriptQin dynasty · 221–206 BCEClerical scriptHan dynasty · 206 BCE–220 CERegular scriptWei–Jin to Tang · c. 3rd–9th century CE

⚠ Some ancient forms are not attested：oracle bone form、seal script form。No excavated oracle bone / seal artifact is attested for this character yet; we leave it blank rather than fabricate.

剑字小篆从刃（刀）佥声，为形声字；本义为长刃兵器。甲骨文未见。

What the sketch shows

Origins & notes

剑本义为剑，两刃的兵器。

Structure

形声字，左部『佥』为声符，右部『刂』为意符表刀刃。

At a glance

Pinyinjiàn

Radical刂

Strokes9

UnicodeU+5251

Character type形声

Theme器物

Six languages, one character

Each page offers hreflang versions; switching language keeps the glyphs and meanings aligned.

English sword Jian is a phonetic-semantic character meaning a double-edged sword.

Français épée Jian est un caractère phonético-sémantique signifiant une épée à double tranchant.

Español espada Jian es un carácter fonosemántico que significa una espada de doble filo.

العربية سيف جيان حرف صوتي دلالي يعني سيفاً ذا حدين.

Русский меч Цзянь — фоносемантический знак, означающий обоюдоострый меч.

Common words

宝剑bǎo jiànsword
剑客jiàn kèswordsman

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