篇 (piān) · measure word for articles, essays, or papers

Meanings

1 measure word for articles, essays, or papers

Characters

篇

piān

measure word for articles/essays

Contains ⺮ (bamboo radical) - texts were written on bamboo strips.

Examples

HSK 4

我写了一篇作文。

Wǒ xiě le yì piān zuòwén.

I wrote an essay.

HSK 4

这篇文章很有意思。

Zhè piān wénzhāng hěn yǒuyìsi.

This article is very interesting.

HSK 5

这篇报告的内容很重要。

Zhè piān bàogào de nèiróng hěn zhòngyào.

The content of this report is very important.

Tips

usage

篇 is specifically for written works: 一篇文章 (an article), 一篇论文 (a thesis), 一篇日记 (a diary entry), 一篇小说 (a novel - though 部 is more common for long novels).

Components

radical

⺮ zhú

bamboo (top radical)

Top bamboo radical (Kangxi #118) - two stylised bamboo leaves drooping side-by-side, the compressed top form of 竹. Carries the meaning: ancient Chinese books were written on bamboo strips, hence 篇 'a piece of writing.' Same radical in 笔 (brush), 简 (slip/simple), 籍 (register), 笺 (note paper).

phonetic

扁 biǎn

flat; tablet (phonetic)

Bottom phonetic 扁 - supplies the sound (biǎn drifted to piān, regular onset shift). Originally a flat door-tablet (户 + 册 bound strips); fittingly, the bamboo strips making up an 'essay' were tied into a flat bundle. Family: 偏, 遍, 编, 骗 - 编 'to compile' shares 篇's writing-bundle imagery directly.