劉 (liú) - Liu — a common Chinese surname & to kill, destroy

劉Tone 2

liú ｜ 15 strokes ｜ radical:

林伦

劉 · liú

Liu — a common Chinese surname;

to kill, destroy;

a type of ancient weapon;

a ceremonial tassel on flags;

to trim, prune.

Liu — a common Chinese surnameto kill, destroya type of ancient weapon

Usage highlights

Liu surnameLiu familyLiu BeiLiu Bangto kill and destroyto trim trees

Synonyms

  • 杀— to kill (similar to the ancient meaning)
  • 斩— to behead, chop

Antonyms

  • 生— to live, give birth (opposite of killing)
  • 育— to nurture, raise

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • Liu Bei was a famous historical figure (刘备).
  • The Liu family lives next door (刘家).
  • He is pruning the tree (刘树).
  • The ancient weapon was called a Liu (刘).

Collocations

  • Liu surname(刘姓)
  • Liu family(刘家)
  • Liu Bei(刘备)
  • Liu Bang(刘邦)
  • to kill and destroy(刘杀)
  • to trim trees(刘树)

Idioms

  • The Liu family's empire(刘家天下)
  • Before Liu Bang, after Xiang Yu(前刘后项)
  • Liu's knife and Hu's axe(刘刀胡斧)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • One of the most common Chinese surnames, ranking among the top four.
  • The imperial surname of the Han dynasty, founded by Liu Bang.
  • Historically associated with royalty and nobility in Chinese history.
  • The character originally meant 'to kill' or 'a type of weapon' in ancient texts.

FAQ