減 (jiǎn) - To reduce & to decrease

減Tone 3

jiǎn ｜ 12 strokes ｜ radical:

嘉健

減 · jiǎn

To reduce;

to decrease;

to subtract;

to diminish;

to lower;

to cut down.

To reduceto decreaseto subtract

Usage highlights

Reduce priceDecrease speedLose weightSubtractReduce staffTax reduction

Synonyms

  • 少— to decrease; to reduce
  • 降— to lower; to drop
  • 縮— to shrink; to reduce

Antonyms

  • 加— to add; to increase
  • 增— to increase; to grow
  • 多— more; many

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • We need to reduce costs (減低成本).
  • The price has been lowered (價格減了).
  • Please subtract five from ten (十減五).
  • The workload has decreased (工作量減少了).

Collocations

  • Reduce price(減價)
  • Decrease speed(減速)
  • Lose weight(減肥)
  • Subtract(減去)
  • Reduce staff(減員)
  • Tax reduction(減稅)

Idioms

  • To reduce to a minimum(減之又減)
  • To cut down on food and clothing(減衣縮食)
  • To reduce troops and streamline administration(減兵簡政)
  • To add or subtract at will(加減隨意)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • The character 減 appears in economic contexts related to cost-cutting and efficiency.
  • In health contexts, 減 is commonly used in 減肥 (weight loss), reflecting modern concerns about body image.
  • Mathematically, 減 represents the subtraction operation in arithmetic.

FAQ