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弦

Mandarin · pinyin xián

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弦: xián · string; hypotenuse, crescent

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

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Mandarin tones

2 · xian2

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1character link42same-tone records1source reference

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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 · 9 senses · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jin4 · jyun4

Cantonese word readings for 弦. 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

string; bowstring
crescent
spring of a clock
(music) string on a musical instrument
(music) stringed instruments or music played by stringed instruments
(mathematics) chord
(geometry) hypotenuse
(figurative) wife
a surname

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

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