Definitions

jiān small, narrow; tiny, little

Etymology

Simplified form of . Depicts two weapons () facing each other. Based on the original meaning "kill", now written as . The current meaning is a phonetic loan.

About

The traditional character "戔" is structurally composed of two "戈" components, each representing a weapon, which points to an original etymological association with cutting or harming. Over centuries, its primary meaning shifted from this concrete martial sense to denote abstract notions of smallness, meagerness, or triviality, as observed in classical compounds where "戔戔" describes something of little quantity or value. The simplified form "戋" retains this evolved semantic content while graphically reducing the character to a single "戈" with a simplified stroke arrangement.

Etymology Hide

Oracle etymology image
Oracle (~1250-1000 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern