DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

淬煉

简淬炼 · 繁淬煉

Mandarin · pinyin cuì liàn

(fig.) to temper; to forge; to toughen (through hardship or repeated trials)

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

淬: cuì · temper; dye; soak; change, alter
煉: Look up this written character
炼: liàn · smelt, refine; distill, condense

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

4–4 · cui4 lian4

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

2character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

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.

淬煉 · find source passages ↗ · 淬炼 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Rime · Wiktionary

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

ceoi3 lin6

Cantonese word readings for 淬煉. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

verb

(literary) to temper oneself through severe trials

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack