论 lún / lùn — the Analects (of Confucius); by the; per; discuss; theory; to talk (about)
同学们正在讨论这个问题。Tóng xué men zhèng zài tǎo lùn zhè ge wèn tí.The classmates are discussing this question.
Common words: 讨论 (tǎo lùn)、理论 (lǐ lùn)、不论 (bù lùn)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to talk"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to talk", including 论 (lún / lùn), 谈 (tán), 讲 (jiǎng). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to talk" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 论 (lún / lùn), 谈 (tán), 讲 (jiǎng) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span lún, lùn, tán, jiǎng — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 论 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 论 lún / lùnthe Analects (of Confucius); by the; per; discuss; theory; to talk (about)Useful words: 讨论, 理论
- 谈 tánto speak; to talk; to converse; to chat; to discuss; (surname)Useful words: 谈判, 谈话
- 讲 jiǎngto talk; speech; to speak; to tell; to explainUseful words: 讲话, 听讲
Common words for these 3 "to talk" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 论 (lún / lùn) — so "to talk" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
讨论tǎo lùnto discuss; to talk over理论lǐ lùntheory; to argue; to take notice of不论bù lùnwhatever; no matter what (who, how etc); regardless of; not to discuss谈判tán pànto negotiate; negotiation; talks; conference谈话tán huàto talk (with sb); to have a conversation; talk; conversation会谈huì tántalks; discussions讲话jiǎng huàa speech; to speak; to talk; to address听讲tīng jiǎngto attend a lecture; to listen to a talk演讲yǎn jiǎngto give a lecture; to make a speech
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 "to talk".
谈 tán — to speak; to talk; to converse; to chat; to discuss; (surname)
我们坐下来谈一谈。Wǒ men zuò xià lái tán yi tán.Let us sit down and have a talk.
Common words: 谈判 (tán pàn)、谈话 (tán huà)、会谈 (huì tán)
讲 jiǎng — to talk; speech; to speak; to tell; to explain
老师正在讲一个有趣的故事。Lǎo shī zhèng zài jiǎng yí ge yǒu qù de gù shi.The teacher is telling an interesting story.
Common words: 讲话 (jiǎng huà)、听讲 (tīng jiǎng)、演讲 (yǎn jiǎng)
All 3 characters
Open 论、谈、讲 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.