DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT
秦
Mandarin · pinyin Qín
Meanings
- surname Qin
- Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) of the first emperor 秦始皇 Qín Shǐ huáng
- short name for 陝西 Shǎn xī
Characters in this entry
- 秦
- qín · feudal state of Qin; the Qin dynasty (from which the name 'China' comes)
Explore the spelling
Mandarin tones
2 · Qin2
Compare attested words with these syllables ↗Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.
Connected dictionary
1character link34same-tone records2source references
Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.Read this spelling in Classical texts
Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.
Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 12 senses · 1 Cantonese reading
Rime Cantonese 粵拼
ceon4
Cantonese word readings for 秦. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.
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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section
Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.
character
- (obsolete) grain; a specific variety of grain; to pound grain
- (historical) Qin (an ancient fief and city, the origin of the state)
- (historical) (~國) State of Qin (in ancient China, rising to power in the Warring States period)
- (historical) (~朝) Qin dynasty (221–206 BC), the first imperial dynasty of unified China
- (historical, by extension) China (an exonym used by the Xiongnu, in the Western Regions, and in ancient India/Rome)
- Shaanxi province (an abbreviation derived from the ancient state's location)
- (historical) Name of several dynasties or states in Chinese history (Sixteen Kingdoms period, etc.) — Former Qin (351–394)
- (historical) Name of several dynasties or states in Chinese history (Sixteen Kingdoms period, etc.) — Later Qin (384–417)
- (historical) Name of several dynasties or states in Chinese history (Sixteen Kingdoms period, etc.) — Western Qin (385–431)
- (historical, rare) Name of an ancient township in the State of Lu (modern-day Fan County, Henan)
- (literary, botany) A specific fragrant herb (often cited as 秦衡)
- a surname
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