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煎饼 (jiān bǐng) — thin pancake (a type of Chinese crepe made from grain flour)

Definition

煎饼 (jiānbing) is a thin savoury crepe made from grain or mung-bean batter, cooked on a flat griddle — a classic Chinese street-food snack. Often rolled or topped with egg, scallion, and sauces.

noun
thin pancake (a type of Chinese crepe made from grain flour)
Measure word · 张

Examples

  • 煎饼。
    Zǎo shàng wǒ mǎi le yí gè jiān bǐng chī.
    I bought a thin pancake to eat in the morning.
  • 煎饼。
    Mā ma zuò de jiān bǐng yòu báo yòu xiāng.
    The thin pancakes Mom makes are both thin and fragrant.
  • 煎饼。
    Zhè jiā diàn de jiān bǐng hěn yǒu míng.
    This shop's thin pancakes are very famous.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

煎jiānpan-fry
饼bǐngflatbread

'煎' gives pan-frying and '饼' gives a flatbread, so it names a pan-fried cake.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
火火huǒfire
Sound part声符shēngfú
前
前qián煎jiān
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

煎 is built from 前, which gives the sound, and 火, fire, for meanings involving heat.

Open 煎 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 餅; 饼 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
飠Written in full as食shífood
Sound part声符shēngfú
并
并bìng餅bǐng
Same sound today

The traditional form 餅 pairs 飠 (food) with 并 for the sound; the simplified 饼 is a shorthand.

Open 饼 →
Appears in
Grains & StaplesFood (General)

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