DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

鍊

简炼 · 繁鍊

Mandarin · pinyin liàn

variant of 鏈 liàn, chain
variant of 煉 liàn

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

鍊: 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 · lian4

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

1character link21same-tone records2source references

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.

鍊 · find source passages ↗ · 炼 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 4 senses · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

lin2 · lin6

Cantonese word readings for 鍊. 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.

character · Etymology 1

to smelt; to refine
(figurative) to measure (one's words); to polish (one's wording)
(figurative) to temper; to steel; to cultivate
a surname

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

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