镜 (jìng) - Meaning, Stroke Order & Audio

镜

jìng[jing4]Tone 4

mirror

HSK 4

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鏡

Guru Deep Dive

English · mirror

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Topology:Left-right

Strokes:16

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (钅) is compressed and slender, while the right phonetic component (竟) is wider and balanced, ensuring the character does not lean.

Simplification Logic: The traditional component 競 was simplified to 竟 on the right side, reducing strokes while retaining the phonetic structure.

1. Meaning

mirror, glass, lens

telescope or optical glassto examine, to reflect upon or use as a warning example

NounNeutral#objects#household items#optics

Sample Usage

她正在照镜子。
tā zhèngzài zhào jìngzi.
She is looking in the mirror.
一副眼镜
yī fù yǎnjìng
a pair of glasses

2. Sound

/[t͡ɕɪŋ⁵¹]/Tone: 51

镜

jìngjing4

`(51)

=jìng

Initial Consonant

Type: Unaspirated Alveolo-Palatal

Sounds like: j like the sound in 'jeep' without much aspiration

Unaspirated

Airflow Tactile Test: No air puff. Lips spread wide like smiling.

Tongue & Mouth Position: Blade of the tongue touches or approaches the hard palate behind the alveolar ridge.

Final Rhyme

ing

Vowel Group: -i vowel group

Sounds like: -ing rhymes with 'thing'

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

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 drops sharply to the bottom, identical to a sharp command or an emphatic 'No!' in English.

👂

Listening trap: Do not confuse with the retroflex initial 'zhìng' or the first tone 'jīng'.

👋

Physical Tone Gesture: Tone 4 is a sharp downward slash, like chopping down with your hand or nodding firmly in agreement.

3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 16 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left radical (钅) is compressed and slender, while the right phonetic component (竟) is wider and balanced, ensuring the character does not lean.

Simplification Logic: The traditional component 競 was simplified to 竟 on the right side, reducing strokes while retaining the phonetic structure.

4. Components

Radical 钅 · Metal Radical (Metal, gold, or mineral)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 钅 (Indicates that the object is made of metal (ancient mirrors were made of polished bronze metal).)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 竟 (original sound: jìng)

A metal (钅) object that finishes or completes (竟) your reflection.

钅 Metal classifier/radical on the left
竟 Phonetic indicator providing the sound 'jìng'

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

5· Phonetic Root: 竟 (jìng)

5. History

Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally, ancient Chinese mirrors were cast from bronze metal. The character combines the metal radical (钅) with the phonetic 竟 (to finish/end), signifying a finished metallic surface used for reflection.

Semantic Evolution: From ancient bronze mirrors to modern glass mirrors and optical lenses.

Ancient Chinese mirrors were made of polished bronze and were often engraved with intricate patterns on the back.

6. Sinosphere

🇻🇳

Sino-Vietnamese

kính

High rising tone in Vietnamese corresponding to Chinese falling tone

🇯🇵

Kanji (Japanese)

On: キョウ / Kun: かがみ

🇰🇷

Hanja (Korean)

경

Sound Shift Bridge: The -ng ending and initial j- map closely to related Sino-Xenic readings.

7. Memory

Vivid Mnemonic Story

You look into a piece of polished METAL (钅) after you FINISH (竟) getting dressed to check your hair in the MIRROR.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)

境

jìngborder, environmentReplaces metal with earth/soil radical (土), representing land boundaries.

竞

jìngto competeThe standalone phonetic component without the metal radical.

Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)

静(jìng)

Has the green/blue radical (青) meaning quiet, whereas 镜 has metal (钅) meaning mirror.

8. Mastery

Active Recall Challenge

妈妈在梳妆台前照[___]。

Clue: jìng zi

Common Learner Pitfall

Forgetting the metal radical (钅) on the left or confusing 镜 with 静 due to the identical pinyin sound.

Memory Prompts

Recognition: What does 镜 mean when you see it in words like 眼镜 (glasses) or 镜子 (mirror)?

Production: How do you write the character for 'mirror' (jìng) with its metal radical and phonetic part?

镜jìngmirror

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