Dictionary › 铁

铁

tiě

HSK 3 Character Traditional 鐵

What 铁 means

1. iron (metal)
2. arms
3. weapons
4. hard
5. strong
6. violent
7. unshakeable
8. determined
9. close
10. tight (slang)

Other readings

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

• Tiěsurname Tie

Example sentences

• 趁热打铁。
  Strike while the iron is hot.
• 打铁趁热。
  Strike while the iron is hot.
• 他铁石心肠。
  Tā tiěshíxīncháng.
  He has a heart of stone.
• 喀山有地铁。
  Kāshān yǒu dìtiě.
  There is a metro in Kazan.
• 打铁成铁匠。
  Dǎtiě chéng tiějiang.
  It's by smithing that one becomes a blacksmith.
• 黄金比铁重。
  Gold is heavier than iron.

Words starting with 铁

• 铁路tiě lùrailroad; railway
• 铁道tiě dàorailway line; rail track
• 铁轨tiě guǐrail; railroad track
• 铁丝tiě sīiron wire; subway enthusiast (abbr. for 地铁粉丝; railway enthusiast (abbr. for 铁路粉丝
• 铁皮tiě pígalvanized iron sheet (for building construction)
• 铁丝网tiě sī wǎngwire netting
• 铁链tiě liàniron chain
• 铁青tiě qīnglivid; ashen (from rage, fear or illness)
• 铁板tiě bǎniron panel; hot iron plate for fast grilling (Japanese: teppan)
• 铁血tiě xuèiron and blood; (fig.) weapons and war; bloody conflict…
• 铁塔tiě tǎiron tower
• 铁匠tiě jiangblacksmith; ironworker
• 铁锹tiě qiāospade; shovel
• 铁军tiě jūninvincible army
• 铁道部Tiě dào bùMinistry of Railways (MOR), disbanded in 2013 with its regulatory functions taken over by…
• 铁锅tiě guōiron cooking pot
• 铁人Tiě rénIronman
• 铁窗tiě chuāngwindow with an iron grating (apartment etc); barred window of a prison cell
• 铁蛋tiě dàniron egg, a Taiwanese snack made by stewing eggs in soy sauce and air-drying them each…
• 铁路线tiě lù xiànrailway line
• 铁打tiě dǎmade of iron; strong as iron
• 铁饭碗tiě fàn wǎnsecure employment (lit. iron rice bowl)
• 铁棒tiě bàngiron club; steel rod
• 铁矿石tiě kuàng shíiron ore

Words containing 铁

• 地铁dì tiěunderground railway; subway; subway train
• 钢铁gāng tiěsteel
• 斩钉截铁zhǎn dīng jié tiě(lit.) to chop the nail and slice the iron (idiom); (fig.) resolute and decisive…
• 地铁站dì tiě zhànsubway station
• 李铁Lǐ TiěLi Tie (1977-), footballer
• 废铁fèi tiěscrap iron
• 滑铁卢Huá tiě lúWaterloo (Belgium); Battle of Waterloo (1815); (fig.) a defeat
• 雪铁龙Xuě tiě lóngCitroën (French car manufacturer)
• 手无寸铁shǒu wú cùn tiělit. not an inch of steel (idiom); unarmed and defenseless
• 磁铁cí tiěmagnet
• 打铁dǎ tiěto forge ironware
• 趁热打铁chèn rè dǎ tiěto strike while the iron is hot
• 钢铁厂gāng tiě chǎngiron and steel works; steelworks
• 生铁shēng tiěpig iron
• 恨铁不成钢hèn tiě bù chéng gānglit. disappointed that iron does not turn into steel (idiom)…
• 亚铁yà tiěferrous
• 城铁chéng tiěrapid transit system; urban railway
• 巴铁Bā tiěTransit Elevated Bus (TEB); (colloquial) Pakistani brethren; Pakistani comrades
• 拿铁ná tiělatte (loanword)
• 摩铁mó tiě(Taiwan; loanword) motel
• 港铁Gǎng tiě(Hong Kong) MTR (Mass Transit Railway)
• 白铁bái tiěgalvanized iron
• 老铁lǎo tiě(slang) very close friend; bro
• 举铁jǔ tiě(colloquial) to pump iron

Characters built on 失

These share the phonetic component 失 (shī), which is why their readings rhyme. Learning them as a family is far cheaper than learning them one at a time.

• 跌diēto fall; to tumble; to trip
• 迭diéalternately; repeatedly
• 鉄tiěold variant of 铁
• 瓞dié(literary) small melon

Characters that look like 铁

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

• 秩zhì(literary) salary according to rank; (literary) an official's rank; (literary) order…
• 钦qīnto respect; to admire; to venerate
• 铣xǐto mill (machining); Taiwan pr. xiǎn
• 铰jiǎoscissors; to cut (with scissors)
• 铢zhūtwenty-fourth part of a tael (2 or 3 grams)
• 钣bǎnmetal plate; sheet of metal

Sounds the same

Read tiě, tone for tone, but written differently.

• 帖invitation card; notice
• 驖dark brown horse
• 鉄old variant of 铁
• 鐡variant of 铁
• 銕old variant of 铁