DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

言

Mandarin · pinyin yán

words
speech
to say
to talk

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言: yán · words, speech; speak, say; Kangxi radical 149

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

2 · yan2

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Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

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1character link57same-tone records

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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.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 16 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jin4

Cantonese word readings for 言. 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 · Etymology 1

to say; to speak; to talk
to discuss; to comment
to state; to describe; to explain
to write down; to record
to ask; to inquire
to inform; to tell; to let know
spoken language; speech
opinion; view; perspective
words; language appropriate to the occasion
proposal; idea; plan
government decree; order
character; word
sentence; writing; works
a surname

character · Etymology 2

(obsolete) I; me
(obsolete) A meaningless sentence-initial mood particle.

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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