贤

賢

xián

adjective #7,723

Meanings

1 virtuous; worthy; talented
2 a person of virtue or talent

Characters

贤

xián

virtuous; worthy; talented

Examples

HSK 5

他是一个贤明的领导。

Tā shì yī gè xiánmíng de lǐngdǎo.

He is a wise and virtuous leader.

HSK 7-9

古人说要亲贤远佞。

Gǔrén shuō yào qīn xián yuǎn nìng.

The ancients said one should keep the virtuous close and the sycophants far.

Tips

usage

贤 is mostly seen in compounds: 贤惠 (virtuous, of a woman), 贤明 (wise and virtuous), 圣贤 (sage). On its own it's quite literary. In modern speech, 贤妻 (xiánqī, virtuous wife) is still commonly used.

history

In Confucian thought, 贤 is a key virtue - a 贤人 (xiánrén) is a person of outstanding moral character and ability, just below a 圣人 (shèngrén, sage) in the moral hierarchy.

Components

radical

贝 bèi

shell; cowrie; money

Bottom cowrie radical - simplified from 貝, a pictograph of a cowrie shell used as ancient currency. The indexing radical of 贤; carries 'wealth, value'. A 贤 person is one of worth, desirable in the way that wealth is desirable. Same family: 财 (riches), 货 (goods), 贵 (precious), 贸 (trade). 贤 is worth that counts beyond coin.

semantic

又 yòu

hand; again

Top 又 - the right-hand pictograph, standalone 2 strokes. Here it absorbs an extra 2 strokes that are the simplified residue of 臣 (kneeling official, originally a watchful eye). The traditional 賢 stacked 臣 (watching) + 又 (working hand) above 貝, giving 'a worthy person who watches and works'. Reform fused 臣 down to a 2-stroke marker.

Stroke Order

贤 xián

贤