王冠
wángguān/wɑŋ³⁵ ku̯än⁵⁵/
The English word "crown" is translated into Chinese as 王冠 (wángguān). Wiktionary also lists 冠 (guān).
Meaning: royal headdress (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 王冠 | wángguān | /wɑŋ³⁵ ku̯än⁵⁵/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /wɔːŋ²¹ kuːn⁵⁵/ (Cantonese, Guangzhou, Sinological IPA, Standard Cantonese, Hong Kong) |
| 冠 | guān | /ku̯än⁵⁵/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /kuːn⁵⁵/ (Cantonese, Guangzhou, Sinological IPA, Standard Cantonese, Hong Kong) |
The word 王冠 refers specifically to the crown worn by a king. If you want to express the action of crowning or formally declaring someone a monarch, you can use the verb 加冕.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 王冠 is composed of 王 (wáng), meaning king or royal and 冠 (guān), meaning headdress or cap.
Which one should you use?
While 王冠 refers specifically to a royal crown, the single character 冠 can be used more broadly to refer to any type of cap, headdress or even a title or honorific. For a more formal or literary way to refer to a crown or headpiece, you may use 冠冕.
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is wángguān. The IPA is /wɑŋ³⁵ ku̯än⁵⁵/.
Did you know?
- In modern Chinese, 冠 is used as a prefix in sports to mean 'champion'. For example, the word for a championship is 冠军, which literally means 'first crown'.
- The character 冠 is a visual story of a person being dressed, combining the symbols for a 'hat', a 'head', and a 'hand' to show a hand placing a hat on a head.
- Historically, the 冠 was not just for kings but was a strict social marker in ancient China. Different types of caps indicated a person's rank and official status in the imperial bureaucracy.
Examples in context
- 这里有个皇冠。There's a crown here.This sentence is useful for using the character 冠 to mean a crown.Tatoeba #10273840 by miaojiandao, translation #880576 by CM
- 王冠上鑲嵌著數十顆光彩奪目的寶石。The crown is adorned with dozens of divinely lustrous gemstones.This sentence is useful for using the word 王冠 to mean a crown.Tatoeba #13916226 by LeviHighway, translation #10826153 by Auride
- 於是彼拉多把耶穌帶去鞭打。兵丁用荊棘編作冠冕，戴在他頭上，又給他穿上紫袍。他們上前一遍遍地打他，說道：「萬歲，猶太人的王！」又打他的臉。Then Pilate took Jesus and had Him flogged. The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns, put it on His head, and dressed Him in a purple robe. And they went up to Him again and again, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and slapping Him in the face.Tatoeba #13539916 by LeviHighway, translation #8070553 by Smoky
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
At a museum looking at ancient artifacts.
- 俊杰 Junjie這頂王冠非常精美。Zhè dǐng wángguān fēicháng jīngměi.This crown is very exquisite.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen它是用黃金做的嗎？Tā shì yòng huángjīn zuò de ma?Is it made of gold?
- 俊杰 Junjie是的，這頂王冠看起來很沉。Shì de, zhè dǐng wángguān kàn qǐlái hěn chén.Yes, this crown looks very heavy.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen它的設計真的很特別。Tā de shèjì zhēn de hěn tèbié.Its design is truly special.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “crown” translations and entries 王冠, 冠, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 冠, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
