tiên

Level ≈B2 (approx.) nounadverb Sino-Vietnamese Top 5,000 most common

Hanoi [tiən˧˧]Huế [tiəŋ˧˧]Saigon [tiəŋ˧˧] browser voice

Syllables · tones

tiênlevelngang

Each syllable carries one of six tones; the mark on the vowel tells you which. How the six tones sound →

tiên means a fine; a pixie; an undine.

Chinese characters: 先

Meanings of tiên in English

Noun

a fine, beautiful creature such as a fairy, a pixie, an undine, an elf, a dryad, a mermaid, etc.
- cô tiên xanhthe blue fairy godmother
- Nàng tiên cáthe Little Mermaid
Taoism xian (an immortal; celestial being)
- thần tiêngods and immortals
- Bát TiênEight Immortals
- Hằng Nga Tiên tửHeng'e the Immortal

Adverb

first; prior; before
- Tiên học lễ, hậu học văn.Manners come first, schoolwork later.

Words with tiên

Example sentences with tiên

Tôi có một người bạn Việt Nam. Tên cô ấy là Tiên. I have a Vietnamese friend. Her name is Tiên.

Bilingual example sentences from Tatoeba (tatoeba.org, CC BY 2.0 FR).

Historical script (chữ Nôm / Hán)

Before the Latin alphabet (chữ Quốc ngữ) became standard, tiên could be written as 仙, 僊, 𠎣. Today Vietnamese is written only in the Latin alphabet.

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 先.

Frequently asked questions

What does tiên mean in English?

tiên (noun) means "a fine; a pixie; an undine".

How do you pronounce tiên?

IPA: Hanoi [tiən˧˧]; Saigon [tiəŋ˧˧]. Tones: tiên — level tone (ngang).

Is tiên a Sino-Vietnamese word?

Yes. tiên is a Sino-Vietnamese word from the Chinese characters 先.

Meanings, pronunciation and etymology from English Wiktionary (wiktionary.org, via kaikki.org; CC BY-SA 4.0), reviewed and edited; example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). IPA shown for three accents: Hanoi (Northern), Huế (Central) and Saigon (Southern). The Listen button uses your browser's Vietnamese voice, for reference only. Levels are approximate, estimated from word frequency. Spotted a mistake? Let NgonNgu know.