xián
noun

Measure Word

tiáo

Meanings

  1. 1 millipede
  2. 2 (classical) name for various segmented many-legged arthropods

Examples

Shítou xiàmiàn pá chū yī tiáo xián.
A millipede crawled out from under the stone.
《Zhuāngzǐ》 lǐ yǒu kuí lián xián de yùyán.
The Zhuangzi contains the parable of the one-legged kui pitying the millipede.

Tips

history
Famous from 《庄子·》: — the one-legged kui envies the many-legged millipede, which in turn envies the legless snake. The allegory: no creature's form is "best."
usage
Today (mǎlù) is the everyday term for "millipede"; is literary. Note: some sources also give a reading wén as a variant of (mosquito) — the millipede reading xián is the one meant in Zhuangzi and modern zoology.

Stroke Order

xián