塵 (chén) - Dust — fine, dry particles of matter & dirt or grime that settles on surfaces

塵Tone 2

chén ｜ 14 strokes ｜ radical:

晨呈

塵 · chén

Dust — fine, dry particles of matter;

dirt or grime that settles on surfaces;

worldly affairs or mundane concerns;

traces or remnants.

Dust — fine, dry particles of matterdirt or grime that settles on surfacesworldly affairs or mundane concerns

Usage highlights

DustWorldly dustDust and dirtDust stormDustpanDust cover

Synonyms

  • 灰— ash; dust
  • 土— soil; earth

Antonyms

  • 净— clean; pure
  • 洁— clean; unsullied

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The furniture was covered in dust (灰尘).
  • He wiped the dust off the old books (拂去尘土).
  • She was tired of the worldly dust (尘世烦恼).
  • The car left a cloud of dust (尘土飞扬).

Collocations

  • Dust(灰尘)
  • Worldly dust(尘世)
  • Dust and dirt(尘土)
  • Dust storm(尘暴)
  • Dustpan(簸箕)
  • Dust cover(防尘罩)

Idioms

  • Spotless(一尘不染)
  • Look down upon the world as dust(看破红尘)
  • Dust and grime(风尘仆仆)
  • Trace of dust(蛛丝马迹)
  • Dust to dust, earth to earth(尘归尘，土归土)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • In Buddhism and Daoism, 'dust' symbolizes worldly attachments and impurities that obscure one's true nature.
  • The character appears in philosophical contexts to represent the transient, mundane aspects of existence.
  • Historically associated with travel and hardship, as in '风尘仆仆' (travel-stained).

FAQ