About
The character 鲜, traditionally written as 鮮, is structurally composed of the semantic components 鱼 meaning fish and 羊 meaning sheep, a combination that points to an initial association with the concept of fresh food, particularly newly caught fish or recently slaughtered mutton. Its earliest meanings centered on "fresh" or "new", from which it naturally extended to describe something as "delicious" owing to the palatable nature of fresh ingredients. Over centuries, the character also acquired a separate semantic layer meaning "rare" or "few", a sense that is distinguished by the pronunciation xiǎn compared to the more common xiān, representing a shift from concrete freshness to abstract scarcity.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
这牛奶很新鲜。
她买了一些鲜花。
海鲜的味道真鲜美。
他的观点非常鲜明。
这种水果鲜有人知。
这幅画的色彩鲜明亮丽。
他向我们讲述了鲜为人知的历史。
这种现象在当今社会已屡见不鲜。