Dictionary › 炼

炼

liàn

HSK 3 Character Traditional 煉

What 炼 means

1. to refine
2. to smelt

Other readings

炼 is 多音字 — it is read more than one way, and the reading changes the meaning.

• liànvariant of {链|liàn}, chain; variant of {炼|liàn}

Example sentences

• 你还锻炼吗？
  Do you still work out?
• 这拉炼卡卡的。
  This zipper doesn't zip smoothly.
• 游泳锻炼肌肉。
  Swimming develops your muscles.
• 我需要更经常地锻炼。
  Wǒ xūyào gèng jīngcháng de duànliàn.
  I need to exercise more often.
• 爬山是锻炼的好方法。
  Páshān shì duànliàn de hǎo fāngfǎ.
  It's good exercise to climb hills.
• 她锻炼时扭伤了脚踝。
  Tā duànliàn shí niǔ shāng le jiǎohuái.
  She twisted her ankle while she was doing exercise.

Words starting with 炼

• 炼狱liàn yùpurgatory
• 炼丹liàn dānto concoct pills of immortality
• 炼金术liàn jīn shùalchemy
• 炼钢liàn gāngto make steel; steelmaking
• 炼乳liàn rǔto condense milk (by evaporation); condensed milk
• 炼化liàn huàto refine; refining (e.g. oil, chemicals etc)
• 炼句liàn jùto polish a phrase
• 炼奶liàn nǎicondensed milk
• 炼字liàn zìto craft one's words
• 炼油liàn yóuto refine crude oil; to render animal fat
• 炼焦liàn jiāocoking; the process of producing coke from coal
• 炼珍liàn zhēna delicacy (food)
• 炼制liàn zhì(chemistry) to refine
• 炼铁liàn tiěsmelting iron
• 炼丹术liàn dān shùmaker of immortality pill; concocting magic pills
• 炼油厂liàn yóu chǎngoil refinery
• 炼焦炉liàn jiāo lúcoking furnace
• 炼钢厂liàn gāng chǎngsteel mill
• 炼铁厂liàn tiě chǎngiron foundry
• 炼之未定liàn zhī wèi dìngto spend a long time thinking about sth while unable to reach a decision
• 炼金术士liàn jīn shù shìalchemist

Words containing 炼

• 锻炼duàn liànto toughen; to temper; to engage in physical exercise
• 提炼tí liànto extract (ore, minerals etc); to refine; to purify
• 修炼xiū liàn(of Taoists) to practice austerities; to practice asceticism
• 精炼jīng liànto refine (a substance); to purify; to refine (one's skills, writing etc)
• 冶炼yě liànto smelt metal
• 试炼shì liànto refine with fire
• 精炼厂jīng liàn chǎngrefinery
• 真金不怕火炼zhēn jīn bù pà huǒ liànTrue gold fears no fire. (idiom)
• 炮炼páo liànto parch and refine medicinal herbs
• 体育锻炼tǐ yù duàn liànphysical exercise
• 熔炼róng liànto smelt
• 冶炼炉yě liàn lúa furnace for smelting metal
• 淬炼cuì liàn(fig.) to temper; to forge; to toughen (through hardship or repeated trials)
• 百炼钢bǎi liàn gānghigh-grade well-tempered steel
• 千锤百炼qiān chuí bǎi liànafter hard work and numerous revisions (idiom); the vicissitudes of life
• 百炼成钢bǎi liàn chéng gāngto be tempered into a steel
• 磨炼mó liànvariant of 磨练
• 洗炼xǐ liànvariant of 洗练
• 简炼jiǎn liànvariant of 简练
• 凝炼níng liànvariant of 凝练

Characters that look like 炼

Easy to confuse on sight. Compare them side by side once and the pair stops costing you.

• 络luònet-like object; to hold sth in place with a net; to wind
• 练liànto practice; to train; to drill
• 栋dòngclassifier for houses or buildings; ridgepole (old)
• 烛zhúcandle; (literary) to illuminate
• 烁shuòbright; luminous
• 恪kèrespectful; scrupulous

Sounds the same

Read liàn, tone for tone, but written differently.

• 练to practice; to train; to drill
• 链chain; cable (unit of length: 100 fathoms, about 185 m)…
• 恋to feel attached to; to long for; to love
• 楝Melia japonica
• 殓to prepare a dead body for coffin
• 潋full of water; trough
• 湅to boil raw silk (to soften and clean it)
• 澰(literary) to moisten; to wet; to soak in water
• 萰Ampelopsis japonica (creeper with root used in TCM); same as 白蔹
• 敛variant of 殓