How to Write 歼 (jiān) — Meaning “To annihilate; to wipe out”

Imagine a deadly force (歹) destroying a thousand (千) enemies at once—this represents annihilation. Or picture the radical 歹 as a gravestone and 千 as a huge number, meaning many deaths. This visual helps link the parts to the meaning "to wipe out completely."

Write the left radical 歹 first with four strokes: horizontal, left-falling, horizontal, dot. Then write 千 on the right as three strokes: left-falling (or horizontal? Actually 千 starts with a short left-falling stroke? Wait, standard: 千 is horizontal, left-falling, vertical. So order: top horizontal, then left-falling, then vertical. Keep the left radical narrow and the right side wider. A common mistake is making the dot of 歹 too large or misplacing the vertical in 千.

歼 specifically means to annihilate or wipe out enemies in military contexts, while 死 (sǐ) simply means death or to die in any situation. 殁 (mò) is a literary word for dying, often used in formal writing. Visually, 歼 has 千 on the right, 死 has 匕 (dagger), and 殁 has 殳 (weapon or action).

歼 is almost always used in military or strategic contexts, such as 歼灭 (annihilate enemy forces) or 歼击机 (fighter aircraft). It is not common in daily conversation and may appear in news about battles or historical wars. Learning this character helps understand Chinese military vocabulary and war-related literature.

Common words containing 歼 include: 歼灭 (jiān miè) — to annihilate; to wipe out; 歼击机 (jiān jī jī) — Fighter aircraft; 全歼 (quán jiān) — to annihilate; to wipe out completely.