How to Write 铅 (qiān) — Meaning “lead”

Imagine a metal pencil (钅) writing on a piece of lead paper—the right side 㕣 looks like a pointy pencil tip. Since 铅笔 means "pencil," you can picture a metal-tipped pencil leaving a gray lead mark. This links the character to its most common word.

Pay attention to the radical 钅: its last stroke is a short horizontal line (一), not a hook. The right side 㕣 has two small horizontal strokes (short lines) inside the top part, not one long stroke. Also, ensure the left and right sides are balanced—the metal radical is narrow, while the right side is slightly wider.

铅 (lead, qiān) has the right component 㕣, while 钍 (thorium, tǔ) has 土 (earth) on the right and 钎 (drill rod, qiān) has 千 (thousand) on the right. Both 钍 and 钎 are rare characters, but 铅 is common in daily words like 铅笔 (pencil) and 铅球 (shot put). Visually, the right side of 铅 is more complex with an extra enclosure.

铅 is most often seen in 铅笔 (pencil), though modern pencils actually use graphite, not lead. It also appears in 铅球 (shot put) in sports, and 铅中毒 (lead poisoning) in health discussions. Historically, lead was used in pipes and paint, but today its use is strictly regulated due to toxicity.

Common words containing 铅 include: 铅笔 (qiān bǐ) — pencil; 铅球 (qiān qiú) — shot put; 铅中毒 (qiān zhòng dú) — lead poisoning.