斩 (zhǎn) — to behead (as capital punishment); to chop (off)

Definition

斩 (zhǎn) means to chop or behead with a single decisive blow of a blade — more violent and final than 砍 (chop down/cut) and formal/historical in tone. 剪 is for scissors, not blades.

verb

to behead (as capital punishment)to chop (off)

Easily confused

听tīnglook-aliketo listen; to hear
盏zhǎnsound-alike(classifier) for lamps, lanterns, and other light sources (also literary: small cup)
断duànlook-aliketo break, to snap (physically)
折zhélook-aliketo break, to fracture
近jìnlook-alikenear; close (in distance or time)

Examples

。
Gǔ dài zhǎn shǒu shì yì zhǒng cháng jiàn de xíng fá.
In ancient times, beheading was a common punishment.
。
Tā ná qǐ dāo zhǎn duàn le shéng zi.
He picked up a knife and chopped the rope.
。
Chú shī yòng cài dāo zhǎn duàn le gǔ tou.
The chef used a cleaver to chop through the bone.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 7-9 Crime & Police

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