钳 (qián): pincers, pliers, tongs
钳 (qián) is a Chinese character meaning “pincers.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 钅 (semantic) and 甘 (phonetic). It ranks #2881 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 钳 metal. Its radical form 钅 (metal) appears in many related characters such as 钱 (qián, money), 错 (cuò, wrong, mistake), 钟 (zhōng, clock, bell).
Definitions
- pincers
- pliers
- tongs
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 钳 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 钳子noun | qián zi | pliers |
| 老虎钳noun | lǎo hǔ qián | vise |
| 钳制verb | qián zhì | to suppress |
| 火钳noun | huǒ qián | fire tongs |
| 钳工noun | qián gōng | fitter |
| 虎钳noun | hǔ qián | vise |
| 大力钳 | dà lì qián | locking pliers |
| 管子钳 | guǎn zi qián | pipe wrench |
| 克丝钳子 | kè sī qián zi | wire cutting pincers |
| 断线钳 | duàn xiàn qián | bolt cutter |
| 压线钳 | yā xiàn qián | crimping pliers |
| 指甲钳noun | zhǐ jia qián | nail clipper |
| 台虎钳noun | tái hǔ qián | bench vise |
| 管钳 | guǎn qián | pipe wrench |
| 钳住 | qián zhù | to clamp down |
钳 appears in 25 compound words: 24 as the first character, 72 as the last, and 4 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 钳 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (2)
Example Sentences
这把钳锁已经生锈了,打不开了。
zhè bǎ qián suǒ yǐ jīng shēng xiù le , dǎ bù kāi le .
This padlock has rusted shut and won't open.
买回来后就迫不及待开洗,从表带到指甲钳,从眼镜到手机壳,统统丢进去滋啦滋啦。
mǎi huí lái hòu jiù pò bù jí dài kāi xǐ , cóng biǎo dài dào zhǐ jiǎ qián , cóng yǎn jìng dào shǒu jī qiào , tǒng tǒng diū jìn qù zī lā zī lā .
As soon as I got it home, I couldn't wait to put it to work. From watch straps to nail clippers, from glasses to phone cases—I threw it all in and let it go sizzle, sizzle.
肺吸虫 藏身于淡水溪蟹、东北蝲蛄体内,囊蚴藏于蟹肉、蟹钳内。
fèi xī chóng zàng shēn yú dàn shuǐ xī xiè , dōng běi 蝲 蛄 tǐ nèi , náng 蚴 zàng yú xiè ròu , xiè qián nèi .
Lung flukes hide in freshwater stream crabs and northeastern mole crickets, with their cysts found in the crab meat and claws.
同时在轮胎、制动卡钳这些小细节上,也都思考了能耗的优化。
tóng shí zài lún tāi , zhì dòng kǎ qián zhè xiē xiǎo xì jié shàng , yě dōu sī kǎo le néng hào de yōu huà .
At the same time, energy efficiency has been optimized even in small details such as tires and brake calipers.
新车还将提供 20-22 英寸多款不同样式轮毂,并可选红、灰、黄等颜色的刹车卡钳。
xīn chē hái jiāng tí gōng 2 0 2 2 yīng cùn duō kuǎn bù tóng yàng shì lún 毂 , bìng kě xuǎn hóng , huī , huáng děng yán sè de chà chē kǎ qián .
The new car will also offer a variety of 20- to 22-inch wheel designs, as well as brake calipers in colors such as red, gray, and yellow.
前六后四的阿基波罗固定卡钳,配合四块巨大的碳陶制动盘。
qián liù hòu sì de ā jī bō luó gù dìng kǎ qián , pèi gě sì kuài jù dà de tàn táo zhì dòng pán .
Akipolo fixed calipers—six in the front and four in the rear—paired with four massive carbon-ceramic brake rotors.
把钳子放在工具箱里。
Bǎ qiánzi fàng zài gōngjùxiāng lǐ.
Put the pliers in the tool box.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 钅 (metal) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 钳 (qián) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 钳 and 酣?
How many strokes does 钳 have?
What is the radical of 钳?
What are the components of 钳?
What are common words containing 钳?
What characters sound the same as 钳 (qián)?
Is 钳 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 钳 with real-time feedback
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