qiān bǐ
pencil
我需要一支铅笔来写字。
wǒ xūyào yī zhī qiānbǐ lái xiězì.
I need a pencil to write.
铅笔的芯断了。
qiānbǐ de xīn duànle.
The pencil lead is broken.
用铅笔画画很有趣。
yòng qiānbǐ huàhuà hěn yǒuqù.
It's fun to draw with a pencil.
铅笔头 (qiānbǐtóu)
pencil lead
铅笔芯 (qiānbǐxīn)
pencil core
钢笔 (gāng bǐ)
fountain pen
圆珠笔 (yuán zhū bǐ)
ballpoint pen
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The Chinese word for pencil is 铅笔 (qiānbǐ), which is composed of two characters: 铅 (qiān) and 笔 (bǐ). The character 铅 originally meant "lead", and was later used to refer to graphite, the main component of modern pencils. The character 笔 originally meant "brush", and was later used to refer to any writing instrument, including pencils. So, the word 铅笔 literally means "lead brush", which is a very accurate description of what a pencil is.
