净 jìng — clean; clean; completely; only
请把手洗干净再吃饭。Qǐng bǎ shǒu xǐ gān jìng zài chī fàn.Please wash your hands clean before eating.
Common words: 干净 (gān jìng)、纯净水 (chún jìng shuǐ)、净化 (jìng huà)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "clean"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "clean", including 净 (jìng), 净 (jìng), 洁 (jié). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "clean" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 净 (jìng), 净 (jìng), 洁 (jié) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span jìng, jié — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 净 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 净 jìngclean; clean; completely; onlyUseful words: 干净, 纯净水
- 净 jìngclean; clean; completely; onlyUseful words: 干净, 纯净水
- 洁 jiécleanUseful words: 清洁, 纯洁
Common words for these 3 "clean" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 净 (jìng) — so "clean" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "clean".
净 jìng — clean; clean; completely; only
请把手洗干净再吃饭。Qǐng bǎ shǒu xǐ gān jìng zài chī fàn.Please wash your hands clean before eating.
Common words: 干净 (gān jìng)、纯净水 (chún jìng shuǐ)、净化 (jìng huà)
洁 jié — clean
我们要保持环境的清洁。Wǒ men yào bǎo chí huán jìng de qīng jié.We should keep the environment clean.
Common words: 清洁 (qīng jié)、纯洁 (chún jié)、清洁工 (qīng jié gōng)
All 3 characters
Open 净、净、洁 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.