羨 (xiàn) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

羨

xiàn[xian4]Tone 4

to envy

HSK 7

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羡

Guru Deep Dive

English · to envy

Cached lesson

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Topology:Top-bottom

Strokes:12

Writing Balance Rule: The top components (羊 sheep-like element) must be compactly balanced over the bottom component (次 or 㫃 part), keeping the central vertical axis symmetrical.

Simplification Logic: The traditional form 羨 and simplified form 羡 share the exact same character body in modern standard simplified Chinese, though minor stroke variations exist in historical scripts.

1. Meaning

to envy, to admire, to be envious of

to yearn forto look up to

VerbNeutral#emotions#psychology#interpersonal attitudes

Sample Usage

我真羡慕你。
wǒ zhēn xiànmù nǐ.
I really envy you.
这让人羡慕。
zhè ràng rén xiànmù.
This makes people envious.

2. Sound

/[ɕi̯än⁵¹]/Tone: 51

羨

xiànxian4

`(51)

=xiàn

Build the syllable

Step-by-step blending

xian

Tone mark placement: Tone mark sits on "a" per main-vowel priority (a > e > o; in -iu/-ui the mark takes the second vowel).

Initial Consonant

Type: Alveolo-Palatal Fricative

Sounds like: sh sound pronounced with the tongue blade flat against the lower teeth

Unaspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: Hissing friction with lips stretched wide in a smile.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Blade of tongue close to the hard palate, tip resting behind lower front teeth, air hissing softly

Final Rhyme

ian

Vowel Group: -a vowel group

Sounds like: ee-ahn sound, rhyming loosely with 'yawn' but with an 'ee' glide

Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'yen'.

Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.

Tone

T4 (51)

5 → 1 (51)

4th Tone (High-Falling)

Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 4 starts high and plunges straight down to the bottom, identical to an emphatic English command like 'Go!' or 'Stop!'

👂

Listening trap: Confusing the soft palatal friction of 'x' [ɕ] with the retroflex 'sh' [ʂ] or alveolar 's' [s]. Ensure the tongue stays forward and low behind the bottom teeth.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: A sharp karate chop downward from high to low, representing a sudden sigh or drop in pitch.

3. Writing

Topology: Top-bottom · Strokes: 12 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The top components (羊 sheep-like element) must be compactly balanced over the bottom component (次 or 㫃 part), keeping the central vertical axis symmetrical.

4. Components

Radical 㒃 · Lacking radical / Regular component group (Component structure relating to deficiency or desire)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 㒃 (Provides the semantic nuance of deficiency, longing, or coveting)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 次 (original sound: tsiart / xian)

A person looking at a sheep (羊) and wishing they had it, combined with sequence/next elements, showing a longing for what someone else possesses.

羊 Sheep or animal asset representing wealth and desire
次 Phonetic and structural framework

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

2· Phonetic Root: 㳄

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally formed by combining phonetic and meaning elements related to coveting wealth or wishing for what others have, often associated with a sheep or valuable possessions in ancient times.

Semantic Evolution: Shifted from general coveting or longing to the modern civilized emotion of 'envy' or 'admiration'.

Often paired with 慕 (mù) to form the compound verb 羡慕 (xiànmù) meaning to admire or envy.

6. Sinosphere

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: セン (sen)

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

션

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

You see someone else with a prize sheep (羊), and you feel a sharp pang of ENVIous desire (xiàn) stabbing downward like a falling Tone 4.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

㳄

Phonetic Core (声旁)

Explore this family →

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

线(xiàn)

线 has the silk radical 纟 on the left, meaning thread or string, whereas 羡 has the top structure relating to envy.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

我非常___你的好運氣。

Clue: xiàn

Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the character structure with silk (线) or mixing up Tone 4 with Tone 1 or 3.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What does the character 羡 mean and what is its Pinyin?

Production: How do you write the character for 'to envy' (xiàn)?

羨xiànto envy

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