biên

See also: Appendix:Variations of "bien"

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [ʔɓiən˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʔɓiəŋ˧˧]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ʔɓiəŋ˧˧]

Etymology 1

Sino-Vietnamese word from 邊. Doublet of bên (“side; edge; face”) and ven (“shore; bank; side”).

Noun

biên

1. (rare, only in fixed expressions) Clipping of biên giới (“frontier”).

   vượt biên trái phép

   to illegally cross the border

2. (sports) a boundary

Derived terms

Derived terms

• vượt biên

 

Etymology 2

Sino-Vietnamese word from 編 (“to weave, to plait; to arrange; to edit, to compile”).

Verb

biên

1. to jot down
2. to write