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砭

biān
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 an ancient stone needle used in acupuncture
  2. 2 to lance with a stone needle; to sting

Examples

HSK 6
古代医生用砭石来治病。
Gǔdài yīshēng yòng biānshí lái zhìbìng.
In ancient times doctors used stone needles to treat illness.
HSK 7-9
他的文章针砭时弊，如寒风刺骨。
Tā de wénzhāng zhēnbiān shíbì, rú hánfēng cìgǔ.
His essays sharply expose social ills, cutting like a cold wind.

Tips

history
Before metal needles, healers pierced acupuncture points with sharpened stones - that is the literal 砭石. From 'to lance painfully' it grew the figurative meaning in 针砭时弊 ('to sharply criticize the ills of the time').

Components

radical
石 shí
stone; rock
The stone radical 石 is literal here: the instrument was a sharpened stone, used before metal needles existed. It pins the meaning to a stone tool.
phonetic
乏 fá
lacking; tired
Supplies the sound. Standalone 乏 reads fá; here the reading shifts to biān. It is the phonetic element only, with no bearing on the meaning.

Stroke Order

砭 biān