How to Write 珍 (zhēn) — Meaning “Precious; rare”

Imagine a king (王) holding a tiny person (㐱) whom he cherishes like a treasure. The king's care for that small figure reminds you that 珍 means "to cherish" or "precious." This visual links the parts to the idea of value.

Write the left radical 王 slightly narrower, with the last horizontal stroke stopping before the right component starts. For the right side 㐱, start with a short left-falling stroke, then two small horizontal strokes, and finish with a vertical curve at the bottom. A common mistake is making the right side too wide or mixing up the strokes with similar characters like 玖.

珍 means "precious" and is common in words like 珍惜 (cherish) and 珍珠 (pearl). 玓 (dì) is very rare and refers to the brilliance of jade, while 玖 (jiǔ) is used as the formal numeral for nine in financial contexts. Visually, 珍 has the right component 㐱, 玓 has 勺, and 玖 has 久.

珍 appears in everyday words like 珍惜 (to cherish), 珍贵 (precious), and 珍珠 (pearl). It is also common in names to express value or rarity. Culturally, 珍 implies something worth treasuring, such as in the idiom 珍馐美味 (rare delicacies).

Common words containing 珍 include: 珍惜 (zhēn xī) — To cherish; to treasure; 珍珠 (zhēn zhū) — Pearl; 珍贵 (zhēn guì) — Precious; valuable.