燕 (yàn): swallow (family Hirundinidae), Yan, a vassal state of Zhou in present-day Hebei and Liaoning, north Hebei, the four Yan kingdoms of the Sixteen Kingdoms, namely: Former Yan 前燕 (337–370), Later Yan 後燕|后燕 (384–409), Southern Yan 南燕 (398–410), Northern Yan 北燕 (409–436)
燕 (yàn) is a Chinese character meaning “swallow (family hirundinidae).” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 廿 (structural), 口 (structural), 北 (structural) and 灬 (structural). It ranks #1690 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 燕 a swallow, with its head 廿, wings 北, and tail 灬. Its radical form 火 (fire) appears in many related characters such as 火 (huǒ, fire), 灯 (dēng, lamp, light), 烟 (yān, smoke).
Definitions
- swallow (family Hirundinidae)
- Yan, a vassal state of Zhou in present-day Hebei and Liaoning
- north Hebei
- the four Yan kingdoms of the Sixteen Kingdoms, namely: Former Yan 前燕 (337–370), Later Yan 後燕|后燕 (384–409), Southern Yan 南燕 (398–410), Northern Yan 北燕 (409–436)
Etymology & Origin
ideographicA swallow, with its head 廿, wings 北, and tail 灬
Decomposition: ⿱⿱廿⿻口北灬 (layout: top-bottom)
Stroke Order
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Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 燕尾服noun | yàn wěi fú | swallow-tailed coat |
| 燕麦noun | yàn mài | oats |
| 燕子noun | yàn zi | swallow |
| 燕麦片 | yàn mài piàn | rolled oats |
| 燕窝noun | yàn wō | edible bird's nest |
| 雨燕noun | yǔ yàn | swift |
| 金丝燕 | jīn sī yàn | Aerodramus, genus of birds that use echolocation, a subset of the Collocaliini tribe (swiflets), two of whose species... |
| 莺歌燕舞phrase | yīng gē yàn wǔ | the warbler sings and the swallow dances |
| 燕雀noun | yàn què | (bird species of China) brambling (Fringilla montifringilla) |
| 身轻如燕phrase | shēn qīng rú yàn | as lithe as a swallow (of athlete or beautiful girl) |
| 燕京大学 | yān jīng dà xué | Yanjing or Yenching University, Christian university in Beijing founded in 1919 |
| 劳燕分飞phrase | láo yàn fēn fēi | the shrike and the swallow fly in different directions (idiom) |
| 白眼河燕 | bái yǎn hé yàn | (bird species of China) white-eyed river martin (Pseudochelidon sirintarae) |
| 新婚燕尔phrase | xīn hūn yàn ěr | (idiom) to experience the joy of being newly married |
| 燕赵都市报 | yān zhào dū shì bào | Yanzhao Metropolis Daily |
燕 appears in 100 compound words: 25 as the first character, 43 as the last, and 32 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 燕 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (9)
the shrike (伯勞／伯劳) and the swallow (燕) part and fly in different directions; two lovers part
the shrike (伯勞／伯劳) and the swallow (燕) part and fly in different directions; two lovers part
Showing 6 of 9 idioms containing 燕.
Example Sentences
消防员迅速赶到，扑灭了熊熊大燕。
xiāo fáng yuán xùn sù gǎn dào , pū miè le xióng xióng dà yān .
Firefighters arrived quickly and extinguished the raging blaze.
卢秀燕访美淡化“疑美论”?蓝喊不必放大解读 绿...
卢 xiù yān fǎng měi dàn huà yí měi lùn ? lán hǎn bù bì fàng dà jiě dòu lǜ . . .
Lu Xiuyan's visit to the United States downplays the "suspicion of the United States"? Blue shouting does not have to be amplified to interpret green...
卢秀燕访美 杨琼璎赞“自动补位”:搭建更稳固的...
卢 xiù yān fǎng měi yáng 琼 璎 zàn zì dòng bǔ wèi : dā jiàn gēng wěn gù de . . .
Lu Xiuyan's visit to the United States Yang Qiongying praised the "automatic filling": to build a more stable...
新闻眼/食安阴霾 卢秀燕心中刺 绿捡到枪
xīn wén yǎn shí ān yīn 霾 卢 xiù yān xīn zhōng cì lǜ jiǎn dào qiāng
News Eye/Food Safety Haze Lu Xiuyan's heart stabbed Green picked up a gun
无糖的食物一览表有哪些?燕麦、坚果、蔬菜都算吗
wú táng de shí wù yī lǎn biǎo yǒu nǎ xiē ? yān mài , jiān guǒ , shū cài dōu suàn ma
What is the list of sugar-free foods? Oats, nuts, and vegetables all count
...马利中山大宅跟北方煮锅贴过年 圈中老公杜燕歌系清朝皇族后裔
. . . mǎ lì zhōng shān dà zhái gēn běi fāng zhǔ guō tiē guò nián juān zhōng lǎo gōng dù yān gē xì qīng cháo huáng zú hòu yì
... Mali Zhongshan Mansion and the north cook potstickers for the New Year, and her husband Du Yange in the circle is a descendant of the Qing Dynasty royal family
汤姆通常早饭只吃燕麦。
Tāngmǔ tōngcháng zǎofàn zhǐ chī yànmài.
Tom usually only eats oatmeal for breakfast.
这只燕子的翅膀受伤了。
Zhè zhī yànzi de chìbǎng shòushāng le.
This swallow's wing is injured.
许多燕子不久就要从南方飞来了。
Xǔduō yànzi bùjiǔ jiù yào cóng nánfāng fēi lái le.
Many swallows will come soon from the south.
秋天的时候，燕子会往南飞。
Qiūtiān de shíhou, yànzi huì wǎng nán fēi.
In the autumn, swallows will fly south.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 燕 (yàn) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 燕 and 南?
How many strokes does 燕 have?
What is the radical of 燕?
What are the components of 燕?
What are common words containing 燕?
What characters sound the same as 燕 (yàn)?
Is 燕 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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