枪 qiāng — gun; firearm; rifle; spear; rifle; spear
警察身上配着一把枪。Jǐng chá shēn shàng pèi zhe yì bǎ qiāng.The police officer carries a gun.
Common words: 开枪 (kāi qiāng)、手枪 (shǒu qiāng)、枪毙 (qiāng bì)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "spear"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "spear", including 枪 (qiāng), 枪 (qiāng), 矛 (máo), 戈 (gē). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "spear" covers 4 different Chinese characters — 枪 (qiāng), 枪 (qiāng), 矛 (máo), 戈 (gē) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 4 characters do not share a sound — their readings span qiāng, máo, gē — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 枪 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 枪 qiānggun; firearm; rifle; spear; rifle; spearUseful words: 开枪, 手枪
- 枪 qiānggun; firearm; rifle; spear; rifle; spearUseful words: 开枪, 手枪
- 矛 máospear; lance; pikeUseful words: 矛盾, 矛头
- 戈 gē(surname); spearUseful words: 干戈, 戈比
Common words for these 4 "spear" characters
Anchor each of these 4 characters in a word you can picture — start with 枪 (qiāng) — so "spear" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
开枪kāi qiāngto open fire; to shoot a gun手枪shǒu qiāngpistol枪毙qiāng bìto execute by firing squad; to shoot dead; fig. to discard; to get rid of开枪kāi qiāngto open fire; to shoot a gun手枪shǒu qiāngpistol枪毙qiāng bìto execute by firing squad; to shoot dead; fig. to discard; to get rid of矛盾máo dùncontradiction; conflicting views; contradictory矛头máo tóuspearhead; barb; an attack or criticism自相矛盾zì xiāng máo dùnto contradict oneself; self-contradictory; inconsistent干戈gān gēweapons of war; arms
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 4 ways to say "spear".
枪 qiāng — gun; firearm; rifle; spear; rifle; spear
警察身上配着一把枪。Jǐng chá shēn shàng pèi zhe yì bǎ qiāng.The police officer carries a gun.
Common words: 开枪 (kāi qiāng)、手枪 (shǒu qiāng)、枪毙 (qiāng bì)
矛 máo — spear; lance; pike
他的话前后矛盾，让人听不明白。Tā de huà qián hòu máo dùn, ràng rén tīng bu míng bai.His words are contradictory and hard to understand.
Common words: 矛盾 (máo dùn)、矛头 (máo tóu)、自相矛盾 (zì xiāng máo dùn)
戈 gē — (surname); spear
戈壁滩上风沙很大，很少有人居住。Gē bì tān shàng fēng shā hěn dà, hěn shǎo yǒu rén jū zhù.The Gobi Desert is very windy and sandy, with few inhabitants.
Common words: 干戈 (gān gē)、戈比 (gē bǐ)、兵戈 (bīng gē)
All 4 characters
Open 枪、枪、矛 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.