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砚

硯
yàn
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 inkstone
  2. 2 ink slab (for grinding ink)

Examples

爷爷有一方用了几十年的旧砚。
Yéye yǒu yì fāng yòng le jǐshínián de jiù yàn.
Grandfather has an old inkstone he has used for decades.
笔墨纸砚合称文房四宝。
Bǐ mò zhǐ yàn héchēng wénfángsìbǎo.
Brush, ink, paper and inkstone are called the Four Treasures of the Study.

Tips

culture
The inkstone is one of the 文房四宝 (Four Treasures of the Study): brush, ink, paper, inkstone. You grind a solid ink-stick with water on its surface to make liquid ink.

Components

radical
石 shí
stone
The stone radical. An inkstone is literally a carved slab of stone, so this radical states the material directly rather than just hinting at it.
phonetic
见 jiàn
to see
Provides the sound; jiàn drifted to yàn over time. It contributes no seeing-meaning here, only the reading, paralleling its role in 现 and 视.

Stroke Order

砚 yàn