五言绝句

五言絕句

wǔyánjuéjù

noun

Measure Word

一首五言绝句 shǒu

Meanings

1 five-character quatrain
2 Tang regulated verse form: four lines of five characters each

Characters

character / word

line / sentence

Examples

《静夜思》是最有名的五言绝句之一。

《Jìng Yè Sī》 shì zuì yǒumíng de wǔyánjuéjù zhī yī.

Quiet Night Thoughts is one of the most famous five-character quatrains.

他写了一首五言绝句送给老师。

Tā xiě le yì shǒu wǔyánjuéjù sòng gěi lǎoshī.

He wrote a five-character quatrain as a gift for his teacher.

Tips

culture

Four lines, five characters each, 20 characters total. Rhyme on lines 2 and 4 (and optionally line 1). Li Bai's 《静夜思》 — 床前明月光,疑是地上霜。举头望明月,低头思故乡 ('Bright moonlight before the bed, I took it for frost on the ground...') — is the form's most-quoted example.

usage

Quatrain (绝句) = 'cut-off verse', meaning a short fixed form. Pair with 七言绝句 (28-char version) and 律诗 (8-line regulated form).

Stroke Order

五 wǔ

言 yán

绝 jué

句 jù