Chinese symbol for “nip”
拈
niān
to nip; to grasp with the fingers; to fiddle with; Taiwan pr. [nian2]
The closest CC-CEDICT match for nip is 拈 (niān), defined as: to nip; to grasp with the fingers; to fiddle with; Taiwan pr. [nian2].
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Characters and stroke order
Other Chinese words for “nip”
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 夹断 (夾斷) | jiā duàn | to nip (i.e. cut short); to pinch off |
| 咬 | yǎo | to bite; to nip |
| 掐 | qiā | to pick (flowers); to pinch |
| 鬼子 | guǐ zi | devil (derog. term for foreign invaders); (esp. during resistance against Japanese aggression 1931–1945) Jap; Nip |
Related words
Other words that share a character with 拈.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 拈花惹草 | niān huā rě cǎo | lit. to pick the flowers and trample the grass (idiom); fig. to womanize |
| 拈香 | niān xiāng | burn incense |
| 惹草拈花 | rě cǎo niān huā | see 拈花惹草 (niān huā rě cǎo) |
| 手到拈来 (手到拈來) | shǒu dào niān lái | lit. to stretch a hand and grab it (idiom); fig. easy to do |
| 拈指 | niān zhǐ | a snap of the fingers; a short moment |
| 拈酸 | niān suān | (old) to be jealous |
See also: Japanese symbol for “nip”.
Data: CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0); Unihan Database (Unicode License v3); Make Me a Hanzi (Arphic Public License (graphics.txt); LGPL-3.0-or-later (dictionary.txt)); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.