严 yán — (air or water) tight; stern; serious; strict; severe
我们的老师很严格。Wǒ men de lǎo shī hěn yán gé.Our teacher is very strict.
Common words: 严重 (yán zhòng)、严格 (yán gé)、严肃 (yán sù)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "tight"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "tight", including 严 (yán), 紧 (jǐn), 瘦 (shòu). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "tight" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 严 (yán), 紧 (jǐn), 瘦 (shòu) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span yán, jǐn, shòu — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 严 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 严 yán(air or water) tight; stern; serious; strict; severeUseful words: 严重, 严格
- 紧 jǐntight; nervous; strictUseful words: 紧张, 赶紧
- 瘦 shòutight; thin; leanUseful words: 瘦子, 瘦小
Common words for these 3 "tight" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 严 (yán) — so "tight" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
严重yán zhònggrave; serious; severe; critical严格yán géstrict; stringent; tight; rigorous严肃yán sù(of an atmosphere etc) solemn; grave; serious; (of a manner etc) earnest紧张jǐn zhāngnervous; keyed up; intense; tense赶紧gǎn jǐnhurriedly; without delay紧急jǐn jíurgent; emergency瘦子shòu zithin person瘦小shòu xiǎoslightly-built; petite瘦长shòu chángslim
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 "tight".
紧 jǐn — tight; nervous; strict
时间很紧，我们得快一点儿。Shí jiān hěn jǐn, wǒ men děi kuài yì diǎnr.Time is tight; we need to hurry.
Common words: 紧张 (jǐn zhāng)、赶紧 (gǎn jǐn)、紧急 (jǐn jí)
瘦 shòu — tight; thin; lean
他最近瘦了不少，看起来很精神。Tā zuì jìn shòu le bù shǎo, kàn qǐ lái hěn jīng shen.He has lost quite a bit of weight recently and looks energetic.
Common words: 瘦子 (shòu zi)、瘦小 (shòu xiǎo)、瘦长 (shòu cháng)
All 3 characters
Open 严、紧、瘦 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.