Pinyin Syllable
Chinese characters pronounced jian
Learn common Chinese characters pronounced jian, including 间 jiān / jiàn, 见 jiàn / xiàn, 建 jiàn, 件 jiàn, 简 jiǎn. Compare tones, meanings, traditional forms…
How to Pronounce This Syllable
To say jian, lead with the forward, palatal j, slide into ian, and place the tone on top — one smooth piece.
Initial j
The tongue is high and forward. Do not add an English “d” sound.
Final ian
Settle the final ian into a steady mouth shape first, then lay the tone on top.
Study Tip
Start with the most common characters (间 jiān / jiàn, 见 jiàn / xiàn, 建 jiàn, 件 jiàn, 简 jiǎn) and lock in their tones. 26 common characters share the sound jian, so lean on words to tell the rest apart.
Learn by Tone
jian turns up here with 3 different tones; a change of tone usually means a different character, so the groups below are split by tone.
1st tone
Taking the 1st tone here: 间, 坚, 监… (10 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
3rd tone
Taking the 3rd tone here: 简, 检, 减… (5 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
4th tone
Taking the 4th tone here: 见, 建, 件… (11 in total). Lock this tone in your ear before the meaning.
Common Words With This Sound
Seeing jian inside whole words makes it clear which character is meant — here are common ones.
Characters
26 common characters in this group.