好

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (好):
* → Japanese: 好(こう) (kō)
* → Korean: 호(好) (ho)
* → Vietnamese: hảo (好)

desc

→ Vietnamese: hẩu (“kind, good, delicious”)

Characters in the same phonetic series (好) (Zhengzhang, 2003)
Ideogrammic compound (會意 /会意): 女 (“woman”) + 子 (“child”).
The widely accepted meaning of this character is that the characters for “female” (女) and “child” (子) were put together to form a compound because it was good for a woman to have a child. Similarly, it has been proposed that the compound originally refers to the mutual affection between the mother and child, which then extended to mean “good”. These theories are supported by the smaller 子 found in some oracle bones and bronze inscriptions. See also 保 and the original version of 乳.
However, broader interpretations of the second character 子 could lead to other theories. 子 could also mean “son”, so it may have meant two children, a boy and a girl next to each other, which is a good fortune to have a boy and a girl. 子 could also mean “man”, so it may have referred to the love between a man and a woman, which is good. Duan Yucai, in his annotated version of Shuowen, interpreted it as originally referring to the beauty of woman. Lastly, it could mean that the “attitude” of a girl was considered good.
The two pronunciations are cognate – pronunciation 2 is the *-s suffixed form, or exoactive/putative of pronunciation 1, literally “to consider good”. Compare 惡 (OC *qaːɡ, “bad; evil”) > 惡 (OC *qaːɡs, “to consider bad; to hate”).
This word has been compared with Proto-Sino-Tibetan *hu (“to raise; to rear; to nourish”): Proto-Lolo-Burmese *hu³, Abor-Miri (Tani) u, Mawo Northern Qiang χu, which is only attested in a limited number of languages. If this is correct, it may be related to 畜 (OC *l̥ʰuɡs, *l̥ʰuɡ, *hluɡ, “to raise; to rear; domesticated animal”). Alternatively, compare Tibetan མཁོ (mkho, “necessary, important”).
Cognate with Central Bai hux (“good”), which may be a loanword from Chinese.

cog

⿰女人
㚥
⿱女子
𡥃
𰠗
㝀
𡚽
𡥆
𢑒
𤫧
𩐔

問好

问好

替我給你媽帶個好兒。

替我给你妈带个好儿。


早

Early bronze inscriptions: Pictogram (象形) – acorn. Original form of 皂 (OC *zuːʔ) through an intermediate variant 皁 (once also written as 草 (cǎo)). Borrowed phonetically for "morning" sense.
Late bronze inscriptions: Phono-semantic compound (形聲 /形声, OC *ʔsuːʔ): semantic 日 (“sun”) + phonetic 棗 (OC *ʔsuːʔ), with 棗 sometimes simplified as 朿.
Small seal script: Ideogrammic compound (會意 /会意): 日 (“sun”) + 甲 (“first”) – when the sun first rises. However, Xu Shen's interpretation is not based on oracle bones and bronzes inscriptions.
In some ancient texts, 蚤 (OC *ʔsuːʔ) was often used instead.
Unrelated to the ancient version of 是: in this character, it doesn't represent an acorn but a spoon.
Possible cognate found in Proto-Hmong-Mien *ntsi̯ouˣ (“early”), whence White Hmong ntxov and Iu Mien nziou (Baxter and Sagart, 2014; Schuessler, 2007), and Proto-Tai *ɟaːwꟲ (“early morning”), whence Thai เช้า (cháao) and Lü ᦋᧁᧉ (tsaw²). Note also similarities to Burmese စော (cau:, “early”).

Han compound

老師早！

老师早！


你好

→ English: nihao

→ Japanese: 你好(ニーハオ) (nīhao)

→ Zhuang: mwngz ndei (calque)

/ni²¹⁴⁻³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/li⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ hɤ⁴¹/

/li⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/

/li⁵⁵⁴ ho⁵⁵⁴/

/lɯ⁵⁵⁴ ho⁵⁵⁴/

/lu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/

/lɯ⁵²⁻³⁵ ho⁵²/

/lu⁵²⁻³⁵ ho⁵²⁻²¹/

/ni²¹⁴⁻³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/li⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ hɤ⁴¹/

/li⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/

/li⁵⁵⁴ ho⁵⁵⁴/

/lɯ⁵⁵⁴ ho⁵⁵⁴/

/lu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/

/lɯ⁵²⁻³⁵ ho⁵²/

/lu⁵²⁻³⁵ ho⁵²⁻²¹/

你好，好久不見。

你好，好久不见。


您好

/nin³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/nin³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

Hello, this is China Mobile, how can I help you?

Nín hǎo, zhèlǐ shì Zhōngguó Yídòng, qǐngwèn yǒu shénme kěyǐ bāng nín de ma?

您好，這裡是中國移動，請問有什麼可以幫您的嗎？

您好，这里是中国移动，请问有什么可以帮您的吗？


幸會

/ɕiŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹/

/hɐŋ²² wuːi̯²²/

/ɕiŋ⁵¹⁻⁵³ xu̯eɪ̯⁵¹/

/hɐŋ²² wuːi̯²²/


哈囉

/xä⁵⁵ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

/haː⁵⁵ lɔː²¹⁻³⁵/

/ha⁴⁴⁻²² lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻²² lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻³³ lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻³³ lɤ⁴⁴/

/xä⁵⁵ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

/haː⁵⁵ lɔː²¹⁻³⁵/

/ha⁴⁴⁻²² lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻²² lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻³³ lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻³³ lɤ⁴⁴/


恭喜發財

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (恭喜發財):
* → Vietnamese: cung hỉ phát tài (恭喜發財)

desc

→ English: Kung Hei Fat Choi, Gong Xi Fa Cai, Kiong Hee Huat Chai

→ Indonesian: Kiong Hi Huat Cai

→ Tagalog: Kung Hey Fat Tsoy, Kiong Hee Huat Tsai

ㄍㄨㄥ ㄒㄧˇ ㄈㄚ ㄘㄞˊ

ㄍㄨㄥ ㄒㄧˇ ㄈㄚ ㄘㄞˊ

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹ fä⁵⁵ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ hei̯³⁵ faːt̚³ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹/

/kɵŋ³³ hei⁵⁵ fat̚³³ tʰᵘɔi²²/

/kiuŋ⁵³ hi²⁴⁻³³ fat⁵⁻² t͡sʰoi⁵⁵/

/kiʊŋ⁴⁴⁻³⁵ hi³¹ fat̚¹ t͡sʰoɪ¹¹/

/kyŋ⁵⁵⁻⁵³ ⁽ʰ⁻⁾ŋi³³ huaʔ²⁴⁻²¹ t͡sai⁵³/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² hi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁴ t͡sai²⁴/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² hi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁵ t͡sai¹³/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ hi⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁴ t͡sai²³/

/kiɔŋ³³ hi⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ huat̚⁵⁻²⁴ t͡sai²⁴/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² hi⁴²⁻²⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁴ t͡sai²⁴/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ hi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁴ t͡sai²⁴/

/kioŋ³³⁻²³ hi⁵²⁻³⁵ huak̚²⁻⁴ t͡sʰai⁵⁵/

/kioŋ³³⁻²³ hi⁵²⁻³⁵ huek̚²⁻⁴ t͡sʰai⁵⁵/

/koŋ⁵⁵ ɕi³³ faʔ⁴⁴ ze²³/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹ fä⁵⁵ t͡sʰaɪ̯³⁵/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ hei̯³⁵ faːt̚³ t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹/

/kɵŋ³³ hei⁵⁵ fat̚³³ tʰᵘɔi²²/

/kiuŋ⁵³ hi²⁴⁻³³ fat⁵⁻² t͡sʰoi⁵⁵/

/kiʊŋ⁴⁴⁻³⁵ hi³¹ fat̚¹ t͡sʰoɪ¹¹/

/kyŋ⁵⁵⁻⁵³ ⁽ʰ⁻⁾ŋi³³ huaʔ²⁴⁻²¹ t͡sai⁵³/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² hi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁴ t͡sai²⁴/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² hi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁵ t͡sai¹³/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ hi⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁴ t͡sai²³/

/kiɔŋ³³ hi⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ huat̚⁵⁻²⁴ t͡sai²⁴/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² hi⁴²⁻²⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁴ t͡sai²⁴/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ hi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ huat̚³²⁻⁴ t͡sai²⁴/

/kioŋ³³⁻²³ hi⁵²⁻³⁵ huak̚²⁻⁴ t͡sʰai⁵⁵/

/kioŋ³³⁻²³ hi⁵²⁻³⁵ huek̚²⁻⁴ t͡sʰai⁵⁵/

/koŋ⁵⁵ ɕi³³ faʔ⁴⁴ ze²³/

Originated in post-Opium War Guangzhou Cantonese, now a general Chinese phrase.

(a cheeky request for a red packet of lucky money)

恭喜發財，紅包拿來！

恭喜发财，红包拿来！

gung¹ hei² faat³ coi⁴, lai⁶ si⁶ dau⁶ loi⁴!

恭喜發財，利市𢭃來！

恭喜发财，利市𢭃来！

He liked to call a restaurant on every New Year's Day (of the lunar calendar), as he knew clearly the lady there answering the phone would inevitably greet him with "Kung Hei Fat Choi". Upon hearing this he (Zhou Shi) would promptly reply by saying "Thank you, thank you" and then just hang up. His reason for doing this was just to get an auspicious start of the new year, not an act of patronisation."

馬家輝 (Ma Ka Fai), 《我們──關於這個時代的一些喜悅與憂傷》 (Us - Some Happiness and Sadness about This Era), page 62

taa¹ hei² fun¹ jyu¹ daai⁶ nin⁴ co¹ jat¹ daa² din⁶ waa⁶⁻² kap¹ jat¹ gaa¹ zau² lau⁴, jan¹ wai⁶ taa¹ ming⁴ zi¹ dou³ zip³ din⁶ waa⁶⁻² dik¹ siu² ze² naa⁴ hei² teng¹ tung² hau⁶ syut³ dik¹ dai⁶ jat¹ geoi³ waa⁶ bit¹ si⁶ “gung¹ hei² faat³ coi⁴”, zau¹ sek⁶ sin¹ saang¹ lin⁴ mong⁴ wui⁴ jing³ “do¹ ze⁶ do¹ ze⁶”, jin⁴ hau⁶ maa⁵ soeng⁶ sau¹ sin³; seon⁴ seoi⁶ wai⁶ liu⁵ ceoi² go³ hou² ji³ tau⁴, bat¹ wai⁶ bong¹ can³.

他喜歡於大年初一打電話給一家酒樓，因為他明知道接電話的小姐拿起聽筒後說的第一句話必是「恭喜發財」，周石先生連忙回應「多謝多謝」，然後馬上收線；純粹為了取個好意頭，不為幫襯。

他喜欢于大年初一打电话给一家酒楼，因为他明知道接电话的小姐拿起听筒后说的第一句话必是「恭喜发财」，周石先生连忙回应「多谢多谢」，然后马上收线；纯粹为了取个好意头，不为帮衬。

Happy New Year (congratulations and best wishes for a prosperous New Year)


新年快樂

ㄒㄧㄣ ㄋㄧㄢˊ ㄎㄨㄞˋ ㄌㄜˋ

ㄒㄧㄣ ㄋㄧㄢˊ ㄎㄨㄞˋ ㄌㄜˋ

синьнянь куайлэ

/ɕin⁵⁵ ni̯ɛn³⁵ kʰu̯aɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ lɤ⁵¹/

/sɐn⁵⁵ niːn²¹ faːi̯³³ lɔːk̚²/

/ɬin³³ ⁿden²²⁻²²⁵ fai³³ lɔk̚³²/

/ɕin⁴⁴⁻³⁵ ŋian¹¹ kʰuaɪ⁵³ lɔk̚⁵/

/sin⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ²⁴⁻²² kʰuai²¹⁻⁵³ lɔk̚⁴/

/sin³³ nĩ²⁴⁻²² kʰuai⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ lɔk̚²⁴/

/sin⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ¹³⁻²² kʰuai²¹⁻⁵³ lɔk̚¹²¹/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ nĩ²⁴⁻¹¹ kʰuai¹¹⁻⁵³ lɔk̚⁴/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ nĩ²³⁻³³ kʰuai²¹⁻⁴¹ lɔk̚⁴/

/siŋ³³⁻²³ ni⁵⁵⁻¹¹ kʰuai²¹³⁻⁵⁵ lak̚⁴/

/ɕin⁵⁵ ni̯ɛn³⁵ kʰu̯aɪ̯⁵¹⁻⁵³ lɤ⁵¹/

/sɐn⁵⁵ niːn²¹ faːi̯³³ lɔːk̚²/

/ɬin³³ ⁿden²²⁻²²⁵ fai³³ lɔk̚³²/

/ɕin⁴⁴⁻³⁵ ŋian¹¹ kʰuaɪ⁵³ lɔk̚⁵/

/sin⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ²⁴⁻²² kʰuai²¹⁻⁵³ lɔk̚⁴/

/sin³³ nĩ²⁴⁻²² kʰuai⁴¹⁻⁵⁵⁴ lɔk̚²⁴/

/sin⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ¹³⁻²² kʰuai²¹⁻⁵³ lɔk̚¹²¹/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ nĩ²⁴⁻¹¹ kʰuai¹¹⁻⁵³ lɔk̚⁴/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ nĩ²³⁻³³ kʰuai²¹⁻⁴¹ lɔk̚⁴/

/siŋ³³⁻²³ ni⁵⁵⁻¹¹ kʰuai²¹³⁻⁵⁵ lak̚⁴/


㚥

to become associated with each other in good manners and politeness


你好嗎

/ni²¹⁴⁻³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴ mä⁴/

/ni²¹⁴⁻³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴ mä⁴/


恭賀新禧

ㄍㄨㄥ ㄏㄜˋ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄒㄧˇ

ㄍㄨㄥ ㄏㄜˋ ㄒㄧㄣ ㄒㄧˇ

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ xɤ⁵¹ ɕin⁵⁵ ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ hɔː²² sɐn⁵⁵ hei̯⁵⁵/

/kyŋ⁵⁵⁻⁵³ ⁽ʰ⁻⁾ŋo²⁴²⁽⁻²¹⁾ ⁽ˢ⁻⁾liŋ⁵⁵ ⁽ʰ⁻⁾ŋi⁵⁵/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ hɤ³³⁻¹¹ sin⁴⁴⁻³³ hi⁴⁴/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ xɤ⁵¹ ɕin⁵⁵ ɕi²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/kʊŋ⁵⁵ hɔː²² sɐn⁵⁵ hei̯⁵⁵/

/kiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ hɤ³³⁻¹¹ sin⁴⁴⁻³³ hi⁴⁴/

(referring to the Chinese New Year) Happy New Year


薩拉姆·阿萊控

ㄙㄚˋ ㄌㄚ ㄇㄨˇ ㄚ ㄌㄞˊ ㄎㄨㄥˋ

ㄙㄚˋ ㄌㄚ ㄇㄨˇ ㄚ ㄌㄞˊ ㄎㄨㄥˋ

саламу’алайкун

/sä⁵¹ lä⁵⁵ mu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ˀä⁵⁵ laɪ̯³⁵ kʰʊŋ⁵¹/

/sä⁵¹ lä⁵⁵ mu²¹⁴⁻²¹ ˀä⁵⁵ laɪ̯³⁵ kʰʊŋ⁵¹/

From Arabic اَلسَّلَام عَلَيْكُم (as-salām ʕalaykum, “peace be upon you”).

bor

اَلسَّلَام عَلَيْكُم

(Islam, neologism, rare) salaam alaikum (Muslim greeting)


新年好

ㄒㄧㄣ ㄋㄧㄢˊ ㄏㄠˇ

ㄒㄧㄣ ㄋㄧㄢˊ ㄏㄠˇ

/ɕin⁵⁵ ni̯ɛn³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/sin⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ²⁴⁻²² ho⁵³/

/sin³³ nĩ²⁴⁻²² ho⁵⁵⁴/

/sin⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ¹³⁻²² ho⁵³/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ nĩ²⁴⁻¹¹ ho⁵³/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ nĩ²³⁻³³ hɤ⁴¹/

/ɕin⁵⁵ ni̯ɛn³⁵ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/sin⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ²⁴⁻²² ho⁵³/

/sin³³ nĩ²⁴⁻²² ho⁵⁵⁴/

/sin⁴⁴⁻²² nĩ¹³⁻²² ho⁵³/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ nĩ²⁴⁻¹¹ ho⁵³/

/sin⁴⁴⁻³³ nĩ²³⁻³³ hɤ⁴¹/


哈羅

/xä⁵⁵ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

/haː⁵⁵ lɔː²¹⁻³⁵/

/ha⁴⁴⁻²² lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻²² lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻³³ lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻³³ lɤ⁴⁴/

/xä⁵⁵ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

/haː⁵⁵ lɔː²¹⁻³⁵/

/ha⁴⁴⁻²² lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻²² lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻³³ lo⁴⁴/

/ha⁴⁴⁻³³ lɤ⁴⁴/

(rare, humorous) alternative form of 哈囉 /哈啰 (hāluó, “hello”)


儂好

/noŋ³³ hɔ³⁴/

/noŋ³³ hɔ³⁴/


你們好

/ni²¹⁴ mən⁴ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/ni²¹⁴ mən⁴ xɑʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/


扎西德勒

ㄓㄚ ㄒㄧ ㄉㄜˊ ㄌㄜˋ

ㄓㄚ ㄒㄧ ㄉㄜˊ ㄌㄜˋ

/ʈ͡ʂä⁵⁵ ɕi⁵⁵ tɤ³⁵ lɤ⁵¹/

/ʈ͡ʂä⁵⁵ ɕi⁵⁵ tɤ³⁵ lɤ⁵¹/

Borrowed from Tibetan བཀྲ་ཤིས་བདེ་ལེགས (bkra shis bde legs).

བཀྲ་ཤིས་བདེ་ལེགས

tashi delek, a Tibetan all-purpose greeting with the meaning of "blessings and good luck".


色蘭

/sɤ⁵¹ län³⁵/

/sɤ⁵¹ län³⁵/

Borrowed from Arabic سَلَام (salām). Doublet of 沙龍 /沙龙 (shālóng).

(Islam) salaam; salaam alaikum (used by the Hui people)


摩西摩西

Borrowed from Japanese もしもし (moshimoshi).

(Taiwanese Hakka) hello (used when answering the telephone)


汝好

/li⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ hɤ⁴¹/

/li⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/

/li⁵⁵⁴ ho⁵⁵⁴/

/lɯ⁵⁵⁴ ho⁵⁵⁴/

/lu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/

/lɯ⁵²⁻³⁵ ho⁵²/

/lu⁵²⁻³⁵ ho⁵²⁻²¹/

/li⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ hɤ⁴¹/

/li⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/

/li⁵⁵⁴ ho⁵⁵⁴/

/lɯ⁵⁵⁴ ho⁵⁵⁴/

/lu⁵³⁻⁴⁴ ho⁵³/

/lɯ⁵²⁻³⁵ ho⁵²/

/lu⁵²⁻³⁵ ho⁵²⁻²¹/


薩拉姆

/sä⁵¹ lä⁵⁵ mu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

/sä⁵¹ lä⁵⁵ mu²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/

From Arabic سَلَام (salām). The greeting comes via Uyghur سالام (salam). Doublet of 沙龍 /沙龙 (shālóng).

(chiefly Xinjiang Mandarin) salaam (a respectful ceremonial greeting)


哈嘍

/xä⁵⁵ loʊ̯²/

/haː⁵⁵ lɐu̯³³/

/xä⁵⁵ loʊ̯²/

/haː⁵⁵ lɐu̯³³/


你好冇

/ŋ̍¹¹ ho³¹ mo¹¹/

/ŋ̍¹¹ ho³¹ mo¹¹/


安安

/ˀän⁵⁵ ˀän⁵⁵/

/ɔːn⁵⁵ ɔːn⁵⁵/

/ˀän⁵⁵ ˀän⁵⁵/

/ɔːn⁵⁵ ɔːn⁵⁵/

(chiefly Taiwan) a general greeting; hello; goodbye; good morning; good afternoon; good evening; good night