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Definition 2025

弦

弦

See also: 絃

Translingual

Han character

弦 (radical 57 弓+5, 8 strokes, cangjie input 弓卜女戈 (NYVI), four-corner 10232, composition ⿰弓玄)

References

  • KangXi: page 357, character 31
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 9754
  • Dae Jaweon: page 674, character 13
  • Hanyu Da Zidian: volume 2, page 993, character 7
  • Unihan data for U+5F26

Chinese

trad. 弦/絃
simp. 弦

Glyph origin

Characters in the same phonetic series (玄) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
Old Chinese
弦 *ɡeːn
絃 *ɡeːn, *qʰʷeːn
舷 *ɡeːn
痃 *ɡeːn
胘 *ɡeːn, *ɡʷeːn
蚿 *ɡeːn
伭 *ɡeːn
婱 *ɡeːn
玄 *ɡʷeːn
眩 *ɡʷeːn, *ɡʷeːn
玹 *ɡʷeːn, *ɡʷeːn
玆 *ɡʷeːn
詃 *kʷeːn
泫 *ɡʷeːn
鉉 *ɡʷeːn
炫 *ɡʷeːn
袨 *ɡʷeːn
衒 *ɡʷeːn
惤 *ɡʷreːŋ

Phono-semantic compound (形聲, OC *ɡeːn) : semantic 弓 ‎(“bow”) + phonetic 玄 ‎(OC *ɡʷeːn).

Pronunciation

  • Dialectal data▼
Variety Location 弦
Mandarin Beijing /ɕian³⁵/
Harbin /ɕian²⁴/
Tianjin /ɕian⁴⁵/
Jinan /ɕiã⁴²/
Qingdao /ɕyã⁴²/
Zhengzhou /ɕyan⁴²/
Xi'an /ɕiã²⁴/
Xining /ɕiã²⁴/
Yinchuan /ɕian⁵³/
Lanzhou /ɕiɛ̃n⁵³/ 彈～子
/ɕyɛ̃n⁵³/ 續～
Ürümqi /ɕian⁵¹/
Wuhan /ɕiɛn²¹³/
Chengdu /ɕyan³¹/
Guiyang /ɕian²¹/
Kunming /ɕiɛ̃³¹/
Nanjing /ɕyen²⁴/
Hefei /ɕyĩ⁵⁵/
Jin Taiyuan /ɕye¹¹/
Pingyao /ɕye̞¹³/
Hohhot /ɕye³¹/
Wu Shanghai /ɦi²³/
Suzhou /ɦiɪ¹³/
Hangzhou /ɦiẽ̞²¹³/
Wenzhou /ji³¹/
Hui Shexian /ɕye⁴⁴/
Tunxi
Xiang Changsha /ɕiẽ¹³/
Xiangtan /ɕiẽ¹²/
Gan Nanchang /ɕyɵn⁴⁵/ 三～
Hakka Meixian /hian¹¹/
Taoyuan /hien¹¹/
Cantonese Guangzhou /jin²¹/
Nanning /jin²¹/
Hong Kong /jyn²¹/
Min Xiamen (Min Nan) /hian³⁵/
Fuzhou (Min Dong) /hieŋ⁵³/
Jian'ou (Min Bei) /xyiŋ²¹/
Shantou (Min Nan) /hĩ⁵⁵/
Haikou (Min Nan) /hin³¹/
/i³¹/
Rime
Character 弦
Reading # 1/1
Initial (聲) 匣 (33)
Final (韻) 先 (85)
Tone (調) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Open
Division (等) IV
Fanqie 胡田切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang		 /ɦen/
Pan
Wuyun		 /ɦen/
Shao
Rongfen		 /ɣɛn/
Edwin
Pulleyblank		 /ɦɛn/
Li
Rong		 /ɣen/
Wang
Li		 /ɣien/
Bernard
Karlgren		 /ɣien/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex		 xián
Baxter-Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character 弦
Reading # 1/1
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin)		 xián
Middle
Chinese		 ‹ hen ›
Old
Chinese		 /*[ɢ]ˤi[n]/
English string of bow or instrument

Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter-Sagart system:

* Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence;
* Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p;
* Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix;
* Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary;

* Period "." indicates syllable boundary.
Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character 弦
Reading # 1/1
No. 14020
Phonetic
component		 玄
Rime
group		 元
Rime
subdivision		 2
Corresponding
MC rime		 賢
Old
Chinese		 /*ɡeːn/

Definitions

弦

  1. string
  2. crescent
  3. spring of a clock
  4. (music) string on a musical instrument
  5. (music) stringed instruments or music played by stringed instruments
  6. (mathematics) chord
  7. (geometry) hypotenuse
  8. (figuratively) wife
  9. A surname​.

Compounds

References

Japanese

Kanji

弦

(common “Jōyō” kanji)

  1. bowstring

Readings

Compounds

Korean

Hanja

弦 • ‎(hyeon) (hangeul 현, revised hyeon, McCune-Reischauer hyŏn, Yale hyen)

  1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

Vietnamese

Han character

弦 (huyền)

  1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

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