烟 (yān) — cigarette or pipe tobacco; smoke; mist; vapour
Definition
Covers three distinct senses: 'cigarette/tobacco', 'smoke' from burning, and 'mist/vapour' (more atmospheric than 雾, which is denser fog).
noun
cigarette or pipe tobaccosmokemistvapour
Measure word · 根, 缕
Easily confused
Examples
- 烟。Qǐng gěi wǒ yì gēn yān.Please give me a cigarette.
- ，烟。Huǒ shāo qǐ lái le, mào chū hěn duō yān.The fire started, sending out lots of smoke.
- 烟。Hú miàn shàng yǒu yī céng yān.There is a layer of mist on the lake.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 煙; 烟 is its simplified writing.
The simplified 烟 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (烟) it is 煙; in others it is 菸.
Sound part声符shēngfú
垔
垔yīn煙yān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
This story is about the traditional form 煙, not the simplified 烟. It pairs 火, fire, with 垔, which gives the sound.
Appears in
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