槷 (niè) - Wooden peg or marker & ancient astronomical instrument

槷Tone 4

niè ｜ 15 strokes ｜ radical:

念柠

槷 · niè

Wooden peg or marker;

ancient astronomical instrument;

carpenter's tool for marking straight lines;

to fix or determine.

Wooden peg or markerancient astronomical instrumentcarpenter's tool for marking straight lines

Usage highlights

wooden pegastronomical gnomoncarpenter's markerfixed positionmeasurement standardsun shadow observation

Synonyms

  • 臬— target, standard, gnomon
  • 表— marker, standard, sundial gnomon
  • 标— mark, sign, standard

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The carpenter used a wooden peg (槷) to mark the measurement.
  • Ancient astronomers used gnomons (槷) to observe the sun's shadow.
  • He fixed the position with a marker (槷).
  • The instrument for determining the solstice was called a gnomon (槷).

Collocations

  • wooden peg(木槷)
  • astronomical gnomon(日槷)
  • carpenter's marker(匠槷)
  • fixed position(定槷)
  • measurement standard(槷度)
  • sun shadow observation(槷影)

Idioms

  • To establish standards and norms(立槷定规)
  • As fixed as a gnomon(如槷之固)
  • Following the established measure(循槷而行)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Originally referred to wooden pegs used in construction and measurement in ancient China.
  • Used in ancient astronomy as a gnomon for observing solar shadows and determining seasons.
  • Appears in classical texts like the Rites of Zhou (《周礼》) describing official measurements.

FAQ