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精练 (jīng liàn) — concise, succinct, well-expressed without wasted words

Definition

精练 (jīngliàn) describes writing or speech that is concise AND polished — tighter in feel than 简练 (terse) or 简洁 (clean/compact), with a hint of refinement, like carefully well-expressed without wasted words.

adjective
concise, succinct, well-expressed without wasted words

Examples

  • 精练。
    Tā de xiǎo shuō yǔ yán fēi cháng jīng liàn.
    The language of his novel is very concise.
  • 精练。
    Wǒ men xū yào gèng jīng liàn de biǎo shù.
    We need a more concise expression.
  • 精练。
    Zhè piān lùn wén xiě dé hěn jīng liàn.
    This paper is written very concisely.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

精jīngrefined
练liànpracticed

The refined sense of 精 and the practiced sense of 练 combine to mean concise, with no waste.

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
米米mǐrice
Sound part声符shēngfú
青
青qīng精jīng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

精 pairs 米 (rice) with 青, which gives the sound; the character originally meant polished rice.

Open 精 →

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 練; 练 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìsilk
Sound part声符shēngfú
柬
柬jiǎn練liàn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 練 has 糸, silk, and 柬, which gives the sound. The simplified 练 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not historical.

Open 练 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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