犬

Bai: *qʰuaŋ²

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn²¹⁴/

/t͡ɕʰyɵn²¹³/

/t͡ɕʰy̯e̞⁴¹/

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn²¹⁴/

/t͡ɕʰyɵn²¹³/

/t͡ɕʰy̯e̞⁴¹/

Characters in the same phonetic series (犬) (Zhengzhang, 2003)
Pictogram (象形) – the side view of a dog.
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *d-kʷəj-n (“dog”); cognate with Tibetan ཁྱི (khyi, “dog”), Burmese ခွေး (hkwe:, “dog”).
This common Sino-Tibetan word has been replaced by 狗 (OC *koːʔ) in most topolects except Eastern Min, such as Fuzhou kēng. In other topolects, this word is mainly found in compounds and not used alone.

Han etyl

警犬

He who is presenting a horse or a sheep should lead it with his right hand. He who is presenting a dog should lead it with his left hand.

The Book of Rites, c. 4ᵗʰ – 2ⁿᵈ century BCE

Xiào mǎ xiào yáng zhě yòu qiān zhī; xiào quǎn zhě zuǒ qiān zhī.

效馬效羊者右牽之；效犬者左牽之。

效马效羊者右牵之；效犬者左牵之。

(formal or in compounds or Eastern Min, Waxiang, dialectal Wu) dog


円

/ʐ̩⁵¹ ɥɛn³⁵/

/ʐ̩⁵¹ ɥɛn³⁵/

For pronunciation and definitions of 円 – see 圓 (“circle; circular; round; etc.”).
(This character is a variant form of 圓).
Orthographic borrowing from Japanese 円(えん) (en).


凰

Originally 皇. A spurious 𠘨 was added by the assimilation with 鳳.

(Chinese mythology) female fenghuang (a mythological bird)


凪

Orthographic borrowing from Japanese 凪 (nagi).
Spelling pronunciation, as 止 (zhǐ).


剃

Possibly a post-Han variant of 剔 (OC *l̥ʰeːɡ) (Schuessler, 2007).

剃鬚／剃须 [Cantonese] ― tai³ sou¹ [Jyutping] ― to shave off facial hair


剪

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn²¹⁴/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn²¹⁴/

Originally 𣦃 or 前, a phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ʔslenʔ): phonetic 歬 (OC *zleːn) + semantic 刀 (“knife”). Since 前 has replaced 歬, an additional 刀 has been added.

Han compound

剪草機

剪草机

剪刀

剪指甲


叽

/t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/t͡ɕi̯ɒu̯⁴⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/t͡ɕi̯ɒu̯⁴⁵/


吤

(Suzhounese) Generic sentence final particle.


助

→ Thai: ช่วย (chûai)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *zras): phonetic 且 (OC *sʰjaːʔ, *ʔsa) + semantic 力 (“strong arm”) – to help with one’s strength.


叱

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *n̥ʰjid): semantic 口 (“mouth”) + phonetic 七 (OC *sn̥ʰid).


喹

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 口 (“mouth”) + phonetic 圭 (OC *kʷeː).


喵

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 口 + phonetic 苗.

Let's learn the cat's cry together. Meow, meow, meow, meow, meow together.

wǒmen yīqǐ xué māo jiào, yīqǐ miāo miāo miāo miāo miāo

我們一起學貓叫，一起喵喵喵喵喵

我们一起学猫叫，一起喵喵喵喵喵

(onomatopoeia) the sound of a cat: meow, mew.


喧

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qʰʷan): semantic 口 + phonetic 宣 (OC *sqʰon).


哭

→ Vietnamese: khóc (哭, 泣)

In oracle bone inscriptions, ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): 吅 (“loudly”) + person with long hair (Similar to 老 without the cane) – "cry; weep". The pictogram of the person with long hair corrupted into 犬. Evidence suggests 吅 could be an abbreviation of the sound component 咢 (OC *ŋaːɡ), making the character phono-semantic (形聲／形声).
Shuowen Jiezi interprets it as a phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ŋ̊ʰoːɡ): semantic 吅 (“to speak loudly”) + abbreviated phonetic 獄 (OC *ŋoɡ).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *kuːk (“to weep; to wail”); cognate with Mizo kûk (“to shriek”) (STEDT).
This seems to be an area word; compare Proto-Mon-Khmer *kuk ~ kuuk ~ kuək ~ kək (“to call”), Proto-Austronesian *-kuk (“sound of a sob”) (Schuessler, 2007).


啥

Probably a fusion of 什麼／什么 (shénme) (Lü, 1985).

煞
𠍽
什
甚
省
薩
撒

這是啥物件？

这是啥物件？

儂辣做啥？

侬辣做啥？

吃啥飯？

吃啥饭？

你說啥來著？

你说啥来着？

(colloquial, dialectal Mandarin, Southern Min, Wu) what


嗚

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qaː): semantic 口 (“mouth”) + phonetic 烏 (OC *qaː).

Han compound

(onomatopoeia) Sound of sobbing or crying.


喫

/t͡ɕʰi̯a̠²⁴/

/t͡ɕʰi̯a̠²⁴/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ŋ̊ʰeːɡ): semantic 口 (“mouth”) + phonetic 契 (OC *kʰeːds, *kʰeːd, *kʰeːd, *kʰɯd).

Han compound

Alternative form of 吃 (“to eat; to suffer”)


嗅

Simplified from 齅 (鼻 → 口); in current form: Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qʰlus, *qʰluŋs): semantic 口 + phonetic 臭 (OC *kʰljus).


喚

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qʰʷaːns): semantic 口 + phonetic 奐 (OC *qʰʷaːns).


噬

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *djads): semantic 口 (“mouth”) + phonetic 筮 (OC *djads).
Sagart (2021c) revises the Old Chinese reconstruction as *m-tet-s, from volitional prefix *m- + a root *tet-s (“to bite”), from which 瘈 (OC *k(ə)-tet-s, “mad; rabid (dog)”) also derives.


嚨

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *roːŋ): semantic 口 (“mouth”) + phonetic 龍 (OC *b·roŋ, *mroːŋ).


妍

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ŋeːn): semantic 女 + phonetic 幵 (OC *kŋeːn).

Han compound

(literary) bright, colorful and beautiful


妞

/ni̯ɤʊ̯ɻʷ⁵⁵/

/ni̯ɤʊ̯ɻʷ⁵⁵/


娟

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qʷen): semantic 女 (“woman”) + phonetic 肙 (OC *qʷeːns).


塚

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *toŋʔ): semantic 土 (“earth”) + phonetic 冢 (OC *toŋʔ) – an earthen mound, a tomb of earth.


娶

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sʰloʔ, *sʰlos, *slo): phonetic 取 (OC *sʰloːʔ, *sʰloʔ) + semantic 女.
Exoactive of 取 (OC *sʰloːʔ, *sʰloʔ, “to take; to obtain; to collect; to fetch”) (Schuessler, 2007). Compare the etymology of 嫁.
In Min Nan, the vernacular reading is instead from 𤆬 (chhōa, “to lead; to guide”).

och-l

娶老婆

"If you marry her, you must love her. If you do not love her, why marry her? Marrying her and not loving her—this is something I cannot permit!"

“nei⁵ cou² zo² keoi⁵ zau⁶ jat¹ ding⁶ jiu³ oi³ keoi⁵. nei⁵ m⁴ oi³ keoi⁵ jau⁶ ho⁴ bit¹ cou² keoi⁵ ne¹? nei⁵ cou² zo² keoi⁵ ji⁴ m⁴ oi³ keoi⁵; ci² si⁶ sai⁶ naan⁴ wan⁵ heoi²!”

「你娶咗佢就一定要愛佢。你唔愛佢又何必娶佢呢？你娶咗佢而唔愛佢；此事誓難允許！」

「你娶咗佢就一定要爱佢。你唔爱佢又何必娶佢呢？你娶咗佢而唔爱佢；此事誓难允许！」


她

她去了。

我認識她。

我认识她。

How can I stop missing her! (lit., "how can one make me not think of her!")

教我如何不想她！

And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

新標點和合本 (Chinese Union Version with New Punctuation), 創世記 (Genesis) 3:12

Nà rén shuō: “Nǐ suǒ cì gěi wǒ, yǔ wǒ tóngjū de nǚrén, tā bǎ nà shù shàng de guǒzi gěi wǒ, wǒ jiù chī le.”

那人說：「你所賜給我、與我同居的女人，她把那樹上的果子給我，我就吃了。」

那人说：「你所赐给我、与我同居的女人，她把那树上的果子给我，我就吃了。」


嫠

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *rɯ): phonetic 𠩺 () + semantic 女 (“woman”).


嫑

(regional) Contraction of 不要 (bùyào, “do not”).


孵

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *pʰuw): semantic 卵 (“egg”) + phonetic 孚 (OC *pʰuw).


孀

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sraŋ): semantic 女 (“woman”) + phonetic 霜 (OC *sraŋ).
Zhang (2000) relates it to 喪 (OC *smaːŋ, “mourning; funeral”), 喪 (OC *smaːŋs, “to lose”) and 霜 (OC *sraŋ, “frost (which causes loss)”). However, Schuessler (2007) considers these three words etymologically unrelated.


嬸

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *hljɯmʔ): semantic 女 (“woman”) + phonetic 審 (OC *hljɯmʔ).
Monosyllabic fusion of 叔母 (MC syuwk muwX, “father's younger brother + wife”).

ltc-l

paternal aunt (wife of father's younger brother)


屺

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kʰɯʔ): semantic 山 (“mountain; hill”) + phonetic 己 (OC *kɯʔ).

Han compound

I ascend that bare hill,
And look towards [the residence of] my mother.

The Classic of Poetry, c. 11ᵗʰ – 7ᵗʰ centuries BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

陟彼屺兮，瞻望母兮。


夕

Characters in the same phonetic series (夕) (Zhengzhang, 2003)
Pictogram (象形) — moon crescent. Compare 月.
Related to 汐 (OC *ljaːɡ, “evening tide”).
Schuessler (2007) suggests it is from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-r(j)ak (“day; full day; to spend the night”); cognate with Tibetan ཞག (zhag, “day (24 hours)”), Mizo riak (“to pass the night”), Jingpho [script needed] (jaʔ⁵⁵, “day (24 hours)”), Burmese ရက် (rak, “day (24 hours)”), Lahu há (“night; to pass the night”); may also be cognate with 宿 (OC *suɡs, *suɡ, “to spend the night”) and 昔 (OC *sjaːɡ, “former times”). It is noted that in the oracle bone script, the 24 hour day started and ended some time in the evening or night. Since 日 (rì, “sun”) has acquired the meaning of "day (24 hours)", 夕 was then restricted to the time of the day's end.
On the other hand, STEDT suggests 夕 (OC *ljaːɡ, “evening; night”) was derived from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *ja-n (“night”), from which 夜 (OC *laːɡs, “night”) was also derived. However, 夕 was also compared to Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-r(j)ak (“day; full day; to spend the night”). Schuessler (2007) assigns Chinese 夜 (yè) to *ja (“night”) instead, and notes *ja (“night”) and *ryak (“day (24 hours)”) were kept strictly separate in Tibeto-Burman.

och-l

Woe to us soldiers on these expeditions! Morning and evening we have no rest.

哀我征夫、朝夕不暇。

What night is tonight, that I take a boat into the stream? What day is today, that I get to share a boat with a prince?

Jīnxī hé xī xī, qiān zhōu zhōngliú. Jīnrì hérì xī, dé yǔ wángzǐ tóng zhōu.

今夕何夕兮，搴舟中流。今日何日兮，得與王子同舟。

今夕何夕兮，搴舟中流。今日何日兮，得与王子同舟。

GT - General Taiwanese (no particular region identified)


屢

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ros): semantic 尸 + phonetic 婁 (OC *ɡ·roː, *ɡ·ro).


嵊

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɦljɯŋs): semantic 山 (“mountain”) + phonetic 乘 (OC *ɦljɯŋ, *ɦljɯŋs).


屐

→ Thai: เกี๊ยะ (gía)

Shuowen: Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡreɡ): abbreviated semantic 履 (“shoe”) + phonetic 支 (OC *kje).

Han compound

𡰸
𡰵
跂
𰍸
⿸尸𢪊
𭕞
𡲆

(Classical, Cantonese, Hakka or Min) clogs; wooden shoes


幗

巾幗

巾帼

(historical) women's headgear; women's hair ornament


帚

Characters in the same phonetic series (帚) (Zhengzhang, 2003)
Pictogram (象形) – a broom with bristles on top and tied handle on the bottom.
In modern form, top now resembles 聿 (“hand”), 肀 (“brush”), 彐, and overall graphically decomposes roughly as 肀 + 冖 + 巾.


嶼

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ljaʔ): semantic 山 + phonetic 與 (OC *la, *laʔ, *las).
This character was affected by misreadings, or Youbian dubian.

Han compound

基隆嶼／基隆屿

Xiandai Hanyu Guifan Cidian
Youbian dubian


廿

Two 十 ("ten") written side by side, with a horizontal stroke at the bottom that fuses them.
In characters such as 漢 and 黄, it represents an open mouth 口, while in 度 and 席 it actually represents a stylized rock 石.
The pronunciation in most dialects is a contraction of 二十 (èrshí) (Early Middle Chinese: *nyijH dzyip). The irregular pronunciation (e.g. /nVm/) dates back to the Song dynasty, to avoid homophony with a vulgar word; see 入 (rù) (now commonly written as 日 (rì) in dialects).


徇

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sɢʷins): semantic 彳 + phonetic 旬 (OC *sɢʷin).


廟

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (廟):
* → Japanese: 廟(びょう) (byō)
* → Korean: 묘(廟) (myo)
* → Vietnamese: miếu (廟)

→ Proto-Be: *miːwᴮꟲ²

Lingao: miu⁴

desc

→ Lü: ᦶᦖᧁᧈ (ṁaew¹)

→ Lü: ᦶᦖᧁᧈ (ṁaew¹)

/miːu̯²²⁻³⁵/

/ᵐbiau³²⁻³²⁵/

/miːu̯²²⁻³⁵/

/ᵐbiau³²⁻³²⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *mrews): semantic 广 + phonetic 朝 (OC *ʔr'ew, *r'ew).
Possibly related to Proto-Hmong-Mien *prəuX (“house”), whence White Hmong tsev (“idem”) (Schuessler, 2007). Note also Burmese မြို့ (mrui., “town, city”).

Han compound

(architecture, religion) temple (Classifier: 座; 間／间)

廟小妖風大，池淺王八多／庙小妖风大，池浅王八多

miào xiǎo yāofēng dà, chí qiǎn wángbā duō


巷

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡroːŋs): phonetic 共 (OC *kloŋ, *ɡloŋs) + semantic 己 (“oneself”)
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *grwaŋ (“village; crossroads”) (STEDT). Cognate with Tibetan གྲོང (grong, “house; village; town”). Old Khmer កុរុង (kuruṅ, “to rule; ruler; king”) (whence Khmer ក្រុង (krong) and Thai กรุง (grung)) is probably unrelated (Schuessler, 2007).
Wu 弄 (lon, “alley”) and Jin 黑浪 (heh4 lon2, “hutong”) are dialectal variants which support the Old Chinese *gr- initial cluster of 巷 (OC *ɡroːŋs) (Schuessler, 2007). Compare also 衚衕／胡同 (hútòng, “hutong”).


慾

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *loɡ): phonetic 欲 (OC *loɡ) + semantic 心 – to lust with one’s heart.


慷

Originally written as 忼. Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kʰlaːŋʔ): semantic 心 (“heart”) + phonetic 康 (OC *kʰlaːŋ).


悔

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *hmɯːʔ, *hmɯːs): semantic 忄 + phonetic 每 (OC *mɯːʔ).

Han compound

(literary, or in compounds) to repent; to show remorse; to regret


懿

(literary) virtuous; admirable; esteemed


戤

(Southern, Western and Linshao Wu) Alternative form of 隑／𬮿 (“to stand”)


憎

→ Thai: ชัง (chang)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ʔsɯːŋ): semantic 忄 (“heart”) + phonetic 曾 (OC *ʔsɯːŋ, *zɯːŋ).
Possibly the same word as 增 (OC *ʔsɯːŋ, “to increase”), as in emotional accumulation (Schuessler, 2007).

Han compound

(literary or Cantonese) to hate; to detest; to abhor

GT - General Taiwanese (no specific region identified)


戊

→ Zhuang: fouh


懵

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *mɯːŋs, *mɯːŋʔ): semantic 目 (“eye”) + phonetic 瞢 (OC *mɯːŋ, *mɯŋ, *mɯŋs).


揪

/t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵/

Jiūzhe cǎo, pānzhe luànshí, xiǎoxīn tànshēn xiàqù, yòu jūgōng guòle yī ge shíqióngmén, biàn dàole wāngwāng yī bì de tán biān le

揪著草，攀著亂石，小心探身下去，又鞠躬過了一個石穹門，便到了汪汪一碧的潭邊了

揪着草，攀着乱石，小心探身下去，又鞠躬过了一个石穹门，便到了汪汪一碧的潭边了


揵

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵/

手揵起來

手揵起来

(Northern Wu, Huizhou) to lift; to raise


擀

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kaːnʔ): semantic 手 (“hand”) + phonetic 幹 (OC *kaːns).

Han compound

to roll (dough, nuts, etc. in order to flatten or crush)


擤

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): 扌 (“hand”) + 鼻 (“nose”).

to blow one's nose (with the finger or not)


擴

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡʷlaːŋs, *kʰʷaːɡ): semantic 扌 (“hand”) + phonetic 廣 (OC *kʷaːŋʔ) – to stretch or enlarge with hands.

Han compound

擴充

扩充


斫

Perhaps related to 觸 (OC *tʰjoɡ, “to butt, knock against”); see there for more (STEDT).

Suì mìng púrén guò Xiāngjiāng, yuán Rǎnxī, zhuó zhēnmǎng, fén máo pèi, qióng shān zhī gāo ér zhǐ.

遂命僕人過湘江，緣染溪，斫榛莽，焚茅茷，窮山之高而止。

遂命仆人过湘江，缘染溪，斫榛莽，焚茅茷，穷山之高而止。


晟

For pronunciation and definitions of 晟 – see 盛 (“to put in container; to hold; to contain; etc.”).
(This character is a variant form of 盛).

For pronunciation and definitions of 晟 – see 晶 (“brilliant; glittering; crystal; quartz; etc.”).
(This character is a variant form of 晶).


斧

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *paʔ): phonetic 父 (OC *paʔ, *baʔ) + semantic 斤 (“axe”)
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *r-pʷa (“axe”) (STEDT). Cognate with Garo rua (“axe”), Jingpho nwa, ningwa (“axe”), Tangut 𘟬 (*wjị¹, “axe”), Japhug tɯrpa (“axe”).


栳

Only used in 栲栳 (kǎolǎo, “round-bottomed container made of willow or bamboo strips”).


曆

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *reːɡ): phonetic 厤 (OC *reːɡ) + semantic 日 (“sun; day”).
Derivative, meaning "calendar" < "calendrical calculations" (Shu), of 歷 (OC *rêk) "to calculate". See there for more.


杏

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): 木 (“wood”) + 口 (“mouth”) – perhaps referring to the tastiness of its fruit.
Shuowen considers it to be a phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡraːŋʔ): semantic 木 (“wood”) + abbreviated phonetic 可 (OC *kʰaːlʔ), but this is unlikely.


梧

Firmiana platanifolia
Wikispecies:Firmiana platanifolia

Chinese parasol tree (Firmiana platanifolia), also known as Sterculia platanifolia


朧

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *roːŋ, *roŋs): semantic 月 (“moon”) + phonetic 龍 (OC *b·roŋ, *mroːŋ).
Unlike most other characters with a 月 (yuè)-like component on the left, this character's 月 (yuè) is not the cursive form of 肉; 朦朧／朦胧 (ménglóng) was originally used in reference to the moon.

Han compound

朦朧

朦胧


槳

/t͡ɕi̯ɑŋ²¹⁴/

/t͡ɕi̯ɑŋ²¹⁴/

《讓我們蕩起雙槳》

《让我们荡起双桨》


楝

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡ·reːns): 木 + 柬.

Han compound

Melia azedarach
Melia azedarach#Translingual

bead tree (Melia azedarach, formerly known as Melia japonica), a tree in the mahogany family


橄

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *klaːmʔ): semantic 木 (“tree”) + phonetic 敢 (OC *klaːmʔ).


櫥

→ Thai: ตู้ (dtûu)


櫻

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qreːŋ): semantic 木 + phonetic 嬰 (OC *qeŋ).


氖

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 气 (“gas”) + phonetic 乃.


氡

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 气 (“gas”) + phonetic 冬.
Borrowed from English radon.


氦

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 气 (“gas”) + phonetic 亥 (hài).
Borrowed from New Latin helium.


氙

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 气 (“gas”) + phonetic 山 (“mountain”). The phonetic component is abbreviated from 仙 (“celestial being”).
Borrowed from English xenon.


柿

→ Proto-Mien: *djəiᴮ

/t͡sʰiː¹³⁻³⁵/

/t͡sʰiː¹³⁻³⁵/

Originally written as 柹: Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *zrɯʔ): semantic 木 + phonetic 𠂔 ().
The current form is phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *zrɯʔ): semantic 木 + phonetic 市 (OC *djɯʔ).


沂

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ŋɡɯl): semantic 水 (“river”) + phonetic 斤 (OC *kɯn, *kɯns).


毯

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *l̥ʰaːmʔ): semantic 毛 + phonetic 炎 (OC *ɦlam).


汊

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sʰraːls) and ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): semantic 水 (“water”) + phonetic 叉 (OC *sʰraːl, *sʰreːl, “to intersect”)


殖

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *djɯɡ): semantic 歹 + phonetic 直 (OC *dɯɡ).

Han compound

to breed; to reproduce; to spawn; to increase


楓

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *plum): semantic 木 (“tree”) + phonetic 風 (OC *plum, *plums)


汐

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ljaːɡ): semantic 氵 (“water”) + phonetic 夕 (OC *ljaːɡ).
From 夕 (OC *ljaːɡ, “evening”). Compare 潮 (OC *r'ew, “morning tide; tide”).

Han compound

潮汐


橘

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (橘):
* → Japanese: 橘(きつ) (kitsu)
* → Korean: 귤(橘) (gyul)
* → Vietnamese: quất (橘)

→ Vietnamese: quít

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kʷid): semantic 木 + phonetic 矞 (OC *ɢʷid).
Unknown. Schuessler (2007) connected 橘 (OC kwit) to Khmer ឃ្វិច (khvɨc, “tangerine”) and also deemed as "less likely" connections to ក្រូច (krouc, “citrus”) and Proto-Hre-Sedang *kruč (Bodman, 1980). However, Alves (2018) considered this Old Chinese word's Austroasiatic origin likely, and compared it to Proto-Mon-Khmer *kruuc ~ kruəc.

Han compound

Citrus reticulata
Citrus reticulata#Translingual

mandarin orange, Citrus reticulata, tangerine, orange


湜

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *dɯɡ): semantic 水 (“water”) + phonetic 是 (OC *djeʔ).


潁

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɢʷeŋʔ): semantic 水 (“river”) + phonetic 頃 (OC *kʰʷeŋ, *kʰʷeŋʔ).

Han compound

(～河, ～水) Ying River (a river in Henan and Anhui, China; the largest tributary of the Huai River)


澐

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɢun): semantic 水 (“water”) + phonetic 雲 (OC *ɢun).

Han compound

billows of a river (possibly specifically the Yangtze River)


濾

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ras): semantic 水 (“water”) + phonetic 慮 (OC *ras).


瀚

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡaːns): semantic 氵 (“water”) + phonetic 翰 (OC *ɡaːn, *ɡaːns)


瀴

天瀴得來，當心眼。

天𰜳得来，当心眼。


煑

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *tjaʔ): phonetic 者 (OC *tjaːʔ) + semantic 火 (“fire”) – to cook over a fire.

Han compound

Original form of 煮 (zhǔ, “to boil; to cook”).


煌

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡʷaːŋ): semantic 火 (“fire”) + phonetic 皇 (OC *ɡʷaːŋ).
Probably Sino-Tibetan; compare Burmese လွင် (lwang, “vivid”) (Schuessler, 2007).
皇 (OC *ɡʷaːŋ, “royal”) may be the same word (ibid.).
It may be related to 光 (OC *kʷaːŋ, *kʷaːŋs, “light; bright”) (Wang, 1982; Schuessler, 2007). Wang (1982) additionally relates it to 景 (OC *kraŋʔ, “bright; sunlight”), 鏡 (OC *kraŋs, “mirror”), 晃 (OC *ɡʷaːŋʔ, “bright”), 曠 (OC *kʰʷaːŋs, “bright”).


焚

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): 火 (“fire”) + 林 (“trees”).

Whoever kills his parents, have him burnt [to death].

凡殺其親者，焚之。

凡杀其亲者，焚之。


熵

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) and phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 火 (“fire”) + phonetic 商 (shāng, “quotient”)
Coined by Chinese physical scientist Hu Gangfu in 1923 to translate the concept of entropy in thermodynamics, where 商 (shāng, “quotient”) represents the quotient of heat and temperature, and 火 (huǒ, “fire”) represents its relation to thermodynamics.

coinage

(physics, information theory, etc.) entropy


爐

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *raː): semantic 火 (“fire”) + phonetic 盧 (OC *b·raː). Originally written 盧, see there for more.


犟

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): phonetic 強 (OC *ɡaŋ, *ɡaŋʔ) + semantic 牛 (“cattle”).


猞

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 犭 (“dog”) + phonetic 舍.


爸

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *praːs, *baʔ): semantic 父 (“father”) + phonetic 巴 (OC *praː).
Colloquial form of 父 (OC *baʔ, “father”), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *p/ba (“male; father”).

inh

我爸是李剛！

我爸是李刚！


珓

/t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹/

/t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kreːws): semantic 𤣩 (“jade”) + phonetic 交 (OC *kreːw).

Han compound

(divination) moon blocks (divination device)


玳

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *l'ɯːɡs): semantic 𤣩 (“jade”) + phonetic 代 (OC *l'ɯːɡs).

Han compound

Only used in 玳瑁 (dàimào); also used as its short form.


獅

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (獅):
* → Japanese: 獅(し) (shi)
* → Korean: 사(獅) (sa)
* → Vietnamese: sư (獅)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sri): semantic 犭 (“dog; beast”) + phonetic 師 (OC *sri).
Originally written as 師. Earliest written attestations in the Eastern Han era include the Book of Han [before 111], the surviving portion of the Dongguan Hanji [c. 150], and Lokakṣema's translation of the Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā [179]. The term is possibly of Iranian origin. In the Book of Han, the lion was described as indigenous to the historical 烏弋山離 (OC *qaː lɯɡ sreːn rel, “Alexandria”), possibly Alexandria Prophthasia (Yu, 1998), which was part of the Parthian Empire at the time. The Dongguan mentions a lion as a gift from the Shule Kingdom in the year 133, where a Saka language was spoken then. Earlier definite dates associated with the lion mentioned in the Book of the Later Han include the year 87, when a gift lion from the Yuezhi was recorded.
Compare Proto-Iranian *cárguš (“lion”). Possibly related to 狻猊 (OC *sloːn ŋeː).
Meanwhile, Adams (2013) postulates possible Tocharian connections; cf. Tocharian B ṣecake and etymologies.

och-l

Alexandria Prophthasia
Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā
Book of Han
Book of the Later Han
Eastern Han
Lokaksema (Buddhist monk)
Parthian Empire
Saka language
Shule Kingdom
zh:東觀漢記


甦

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): from 更生 (“to be reborn”).
From *s- (“causative prefix”) + a root **ŋˤa, the latter found in 寤 (OC *ŋˤa-s, “to awake”), 悟 (OC *ŋˤa-s, “to awake; to realize”) (Baxter and Sagart, 2014; Schuessler, 2007).
Alternatively, Zhang, Jacques, and Lai (2019) compare it to Japhug sŋa (“to come to oneself”), Cogtse Situ [Term?] (kə-mə-sŋâr, “to feel cold”), Brag-bar Situ [Term?] (kə-mə-sŋiɛ̂r, “to come to oneself”).

cog

(literary) to revive; to resuscitate; to regain consciousness


畿

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡɯl): semantic 田 + abbreviated phonetic 幾 (OC *kɯl, *kɯlʔ, *ɡɯl, *ɡɯls).


痢

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *rids): semantic 疒 (“illness”) + phonetic 利 (OC *rids) – a kind of illness.


疫

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɢʷeɡ): semantic 疒 (“sickness”) + abbreviated phonetic 役 (OC *ɢʷeɡ).


猿

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɢʷan): semantic 犭 + phonetic 袁 (OC *ɢʷan).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *b/g-woj-n (“monkey”).
Alternatively, the root may be Austroasiatic; compare Proto-Mon-Khmer *swaaʔ (“monkey”) (Schuessler, 2007); compare also Proto-Mon-Khmer *kwaɲ ~ kwaaɲʔ.


痧

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 疒 (“illness; disease”) + phonetic 沙 (OC *sraːl, *sraːls).

traditional Chinese medicine
traditional Chinese medicine

(traditional Chinese medicine or dialectal) acute illness, such as heatstroke, cholera, and measles


癇

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡreːn): semantic 疒 (“illness”) + phonetic 閒 (OC *ɡreːn).


痔

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *dɯʔ): semantic 疒 (“sickness”) + phonetic 寺 (OC *ljɯs)


痰

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *l'aːm): semantic 疒 (“illness”) + phonetic 炎 (OC *ɦlam).

Han compound

phlegm; sputum (Classifier: 口 m; 篤／笃 c; 啖 c)


璽

From 壐／𱖚. Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *smlelʔ): phonetic 爾 (OC *njelʔ) + semantic 玉 (“jade”).


疣

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɢʷɯ): semantic 疒 (“disease”) + phonetic 尤 (OC *ɢʷɯ).


睬

/t͡sʰaɪ̯²¹⁴/

/t͡sʰɔːi̯³⁵/

/t͡sʰaɪ̯²¹⁴/

/t͡sʰɔːi̯³⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sʰɯːʔ): semantic 目 (“eye”) + phonetic 采 (OC *sʰɯːʔ).

Han compound

You are being unreasonable; I'm not talking to you anymore. [girl, cute-sounding]

儂勿講道理，阿拉勿睬儂！

侬勿讲道理，阿拉勿睬侬！

唔好睬佢。


癌

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 疒 + phonetic 嵒 (OC *ŋrɯːm, *ŋjab); 嵒／岩 (yán) is a variant of 岩 (yán).
From 岩 (yán, “cliff; rock, stone”), since some cancers present as lumps or outgrowths on the body.
In Mandarin, this character used to be pronounced identically as 岩 (yán). Its pronunciation was changed to ái in December 1962 to avoid the homophony between 癌 (yán, “cancer”) and 炎 (yán, “inflammation”) (compare 肺炎 (fèiyán, “pneumonia”) and 肺癌 (fèi'ái, “lung cancer”)). The new pronunciation ái stems from dialectal pronunciations of 岩 (“rock; cliff”) /ŋai/, influenced by 崖 (yá, yái, “cliff”).

癌症

致癌

肺癌

直男癌


砷

Earlier 鉮／𬬹 in 化學鑑原, a translated version of Wells's Principles and Applications of Chemistry. Probably a loan from English arsenic.


硒

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 石 (“stone”) + phonetic 西 (OC *sɯːl).


碘

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 石 + phonetic 典 (diǎn).
Borrowed from English iodine.


硫

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ru): semantic 石 (“stone”) + abbreviated phonetic 流 (OC *ru).
Derivative: 鋶／锍 (liǔ, “sulfonium”).


矛

Characters in the same phonetic series (矛) (Zhengzhang, 2003)
The pictogram of a bamboo spear with a ring in the middle.


祉

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kʰlɯʔ): semantic 示 (“sign”) + phonetic 止 (OC *kjɯʔ).

Han compound

happiness; blessings; good luck; felicity


碑

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *pre): semantic 石 (“stone”) + phonetic 卑 (OC *pe).

Han compound

墓碑

界碑

紀念碑

纪念碑


禧

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qʰlɯ, *qʰlɯʔ): semantic 示 + phonetic 喜 (OC *qʰlɯʔ).

Han compound

favourable luck; good fortune; auspiciousness; blessings


笆

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *praː, *braːʔ): semantic 𥫗 (“bamboo”) + phonetic 巴 (OC *praː).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *r/g/s-pʷa (“bamboo”) (STEDT). Cognate with Mizo rua (“bamboo”), Tibetan སྤ (spa, “cane; bamboo”), Burmese ဝါး (wa:, “bamboo”).


笡

(dialectal) slanted; sloping; inclined; askew; awry


篅

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯än³⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯än³⁵/

(dialectal) a kind of round container for grain made of bamboo or grass


窗

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (窗):
* → Korean: 창(窓) (chang)
* → Vietnamese: song (窗)

→ Zhuang: cueng

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/tʰɔŋ³³⁻³³⁵/

/t͡ɕʰy̯æn³³/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/

/tʰɔŋ³³⁻³³⁵/

/t͡ɕʰy̯æn³³/

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): 穴 (“hole”) + 囱 (“window”).
From circumstantial noun prefix *s- + 通 (OC l̥ˤoŋ, “to penetrate”), literally "where light penetrates" (Baxter and Sagart, 2014).

Han compound

窻
䆫
窓
牕
*囪
囱
牎
𤗄
𪺠
𤗉
𮈾
𡆧

窗簾

窗帘

打開個窗

打开个窗


笙

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (笙):
* → Japanese: 笙(しょう) (shō); 笙(そう) (sō)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sreŋ): semantic 竹 (“bamboo”) + phonetic 生 (OC *sʰleːŋ, *sreŋs).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *mriŋ (“sound; noise; animal cry”); cognate with 鳴 (OC *mreŋ, “to make a sound”), 鈴 (OC *reːŋ, “bell”), Burmese မြည် (mrany, “to make a sound”) (Schuessler, 2007; STEDT).

inh

(music) sheng (a Chinese mouth-blown free reed instrument consisting of vertical pipes)


籮

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *raːl): semantic 竹 (“bamboo”) + phonetic 羅 (OC *raːl).
Compare Mizo hrai (“basket for measuring rice”) (Schuessler, 2007).


簾

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡ·rem): semantic 竹 + phonetic 廉 (OC *ɡ·rem).


籽

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ʔslɯʔ): semantic 米 (“rice; grain”) + phonetic 子 (OC *ʔslɯʔ).


糰

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 米 (“rice”) + phonetic 團 (OC *doːn, “ball”).
From 團 (OC *doːn, “ball; lump”).


紊

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *mɯns): phonetic 文 (OC *mɯn) + semantic 糸 (“silk”)

Han compound

disorderly; chaotic; dysfunctional; confused


綁

綁鞋帶

绑鞋带


箏

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (箏):
* → Japanese: 箏(そう) (sō)
* → Korean: 쟁(箏) (jaeng)
* → Vietnamese: tranh (箏)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ʔsreːŋ): semantic 竹 (“bamboo”) + phonetic 爭 (OC *ʔsreːŋ).

Han compound

古箏

古筝


綾

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *rɯŋ): semantic 糸 + phonetic 夌 (OC *rɯŋ).

Han compound

The fine ones are used for making silk and damask, and also woven into brocade and thin, tough silk.

Tang Dynasty, Fan Chuo, Manshu, chapter 7, part 2

Jīng zhě wéi fǎng sī líng, yì zhī wéi jǐn jí juàn.

精者為紡絲綾，亦織為錦及絹。

精者为纺丝绫，亦织为锦及绢。

a thin type of silk fabric resembling satin; damask


縊

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qleːɡs, *qleɡs): semantic 糸 + phonetic 益 (OC *qleɡ).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan. Compare Tibetan འཁྱིག་ ('khyig, “tie, fasten”), Burmese အစ် (ac, “throttle”) (Hill, 2017).


粽

→ Thai: จ้าง (jâang)

/t͡sʊŋ³³⁻³⁵/

/t͡sʊŋ³³⁻³⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ʔsoːŋs): semantic 米 (“rice”) + phonetic 宗 (OC *ʔsuːŋ).
First attested in Fengsu Tongyi (195). Bencao Gangmu claimed it was derived from 棕 (zōng, “palm tree”) due to similar shapes of zongzi and palm tree leaves.

Han compound

zongzi (dumpling made of glutinous rice, wrapped in leaves) (Classifier: 隻／只 c)


翪

Just with one flap of the wings, it flew off to somewhere far away.

⁵tsy-paon ⁵uaon ⁶zaon ⁷iq ¹tson ¹fi-tsheq ⁶lau ⁶yoe

翅膀往上一翪，飛出老遠。

翅膀往上一翪，飞出老远。


耖

/t͡sʰaːu̯³³/

/t͡sʰaːu̯³³/


耘

Related to Tibetan ཡུར་མ (yur ma, “weeding”), Kurtöp [script needed] (wer, “to weed”) (Schuessler, 2007, 2024).


聾

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *roːŋ): phonetic 龍 (OC *b·roŋ, *mroːŋ) + semantic 耳 (“ear”) – deaf.
Perhaps related to 聳 (OC *sloŋʔ, “deaf”) (Schuessler, 2007).


腡

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡ·roːl, *kʷroːl): semantic 肉 (“body”) + phonetic 咼 (OC *kʰʷroːl).


舀

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): 爪 (“hand”) + 臼 (“mortar, vessel”).
Related to 揄 (OC *l'oː, *l'oːʔ, *lu, *lo, “to scoop out”) (Schuessler, 2007). Compare Mizo lâwk, lawh (“to scoop up; to shovel up”), Mon ဂၠံက် (“to scoop up; to scoop out”) (Schuessler, 2007).

och-l

𦥝
𤔘
抌
抭
㧒
𦥟
𦥞
𦥨
𥦶
𦥵
𦦌

With an arbitrary swing of a club, a roe deer may get knocked down; fish can be ladled straight from the river. Frightened pheasants even sometimes fly into the wok while scurrying away. (a proverb depicting superior and plentiful natural resources)

bàng dǎ páozi piáo yǎo yú, yějī fēijìn fànguō lǐ

棒打麅子瓢舀魚，野雞飛進飯鍋裏

棒打狍子瓢舀鱼，野鸡飞进饭锅里


腫

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *tjoŋʔ): semantic 肉 (“meat, flesh”) + phonetic 重 (OC *doŋ, *doŋʔ, *doŋs).


艙

Considered a 後起字／后起字 (hòuqǐzì). Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sʰaːŋ): semantic 舟 (“boat”) + phonetic 倉 (OC *sʰaːŋ).

zh-l

後起字／后起字 (hòuqǐzì)


臀

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *duːn): phonetic 殿 (OC *tɯːns, *dɯːns) + semantic 肉 (“flesh”).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *r-t(u/i)l (“buttocks; heel; dull; blunt; rounded part”). Compare Manipuri ꯊꯨꯟ (thoon, “buttocks”).


膝

/t͡sʰiɪk̚³²/

/t͡sʰiɪk̚³²/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *siɡ): semantic ⺼ (“meat, body”) + phonetic 桼 (OC *sʰiɡ) – the knee.
Originally 厀, a phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *siɡ): phonetic 桼 (OC *sʰiɡ) + semantic 卩 (“kneeling person”).

Han compound

膝蓋

膝盖


艦

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (艦):
* → Japanese: 艦(かん) (kan)
* → Korean: 함(艦) (ham)
* → Vietnamese: hạm (艦)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡraːmʔ): semantic 舟 + phonetic 監 (OC *kraːm, *kraːms).
"Warship (with boards installed on its four sides to defend against arrow attacks)" (Shiming) > "warship" > "ship" (Guangya). A specialised character derived from 檻 (OC *ɡraːmʔ, *ɡraːms, “fence, railing, board”); see there for more on the external etymology.
This character is a classic example of historical misreadings of unfamiliar characters. The l- initial in southern dialects is probably due to confusion with 濫 (MC lamH, “to overflow”), not due to divergent evolutions of the Old Chinese cluster initial *gr- as this character is often cited as an example of. Likewise, the readings in other Chinese are misreadings, although this is more subtle. Expected Mandarin reflex is xiàn, and jiàn is due to confusion with 鑑 (MC kaemH, “mirror; to reflect”). Wu and Eastern Min readings are results of confusion with 檻 (MC haemX, “doorsill”). Despite these irregularities, all the Sinoxenic readings are regular.


膿

→ Proto-Katuic: *pnuŋ (“pus”)

→ Proto-Tai: *ʰnoːŋᴬ (“pus”)

Thai: หนอง (nɔ̌ɔng)

Watch for signs of infection, which are fever, redness, swelling, warmth, increasing pain, pus, or red streaks around the cut area etc.

急救基本知识, Qingdao United Family Hospital (青岛和睦家医院)

Liúyì gǎnrǎn de zhēngzhào, bǐrú fāshāo, fāhóng, zhǒngzhàng, zhuórè, téngtòng jiājù, liú nóng huò gēshāng bùwèi zhōuwéi yǒu hóngsè tiáowén děng.

留意感染的徵兆，比如發燒、發紅、腫脹、灼熱、疼痛加劇、流膿或割傷部位周圍有紅色條紋等。

留意感染的征兆，比如发烧、发红、肿胀、灼热、疼痛加剧、流脓或割伤部位周围有红色条纹等。


菇

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 艸 + phonetic 姑 (OC *kaː).


臍

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *zliːl): semantic 肉 (“meat; flesh”) + phonetic 齊 (OC *zliːl, *zliːls).
Probably from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-taj (“navel; abdomen; centre; self”) (Weidert, 1987; Schuessler, 2007), with metathesis of *s-t- > *dz- (STEDT). Cognate with Tibetan ལྟེ (lte, “navel”), Chepang तोय् (“navel”), and more distantly, Burmese လယ် (lai, “center, middle”).

inh

露臍裝／露脐装


蒓

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *djun): semantic 艸 (“plant”) + phonetic 純 (OC *tjunʔ, *djun)


菱

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *rɯŋ): semantic 艸 (“grass; plant”) + phonetic 夌 (OC *rɯŋ).

Han compound

water caltrop; water chestnut (Trapa natans)


蒂

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *teːds): semantic 艸 (“grass”) + phonetic 帝 (OC *teːɡs)


蓖

Only used in 蓖麻 (bìmá, “castor oil plant”).


蔔

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *bɯːɡ): semantic 艸 (“grass; plant”) + phonetic 匐 (OC *bɯːɡ, *bɯɡ).


蕓

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɢun): semantic 艸 + phonetic 雲 (OC *ɢun).


蔗

/t͡siɛ²¹⁻²¹⁵/

/t͡siɛ²¹⁻²¹⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *tjaːɡs): semantic 艹 + phonetic 庶 (OC *hljaɡs).
See 藷蔗／薯蔗 (zhūzhè).

zh-l

藷蔗／薯蔗 (zhūzhè)


蜈

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ŋʷaː): semantic 虫 (“insect”) + phonetic 吳 (OC *ŋʷaː).


薑

desc

→ Lisu: ꓚꓬꓺ (tʃɑ̱), ꓚꓬꓮꓥꓺ (tʃɑ̱ŋ)

→ Lisu: ꓚꓬꓺ (tʃɑ̱), ꓚꓬꓮꓥꓺ (tʃɑ̱ŋ)

→ Spanish: kion, kión

→ Zhuang: gieng

/kiaŋ³³⁻³³⁵/

/kiaŋ³³⁻³³⁵/

Originally 䕬, a phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kaŋ): semantic 艸 (“grass; plant”) + phonetic 彊 (OC *kaŋs, *ɡaŋ, *ɡaŋʔ).
Note that the simplified form 姜 (OC *klaŋ) is also a traditional character on its own.
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *kjaŋ (“ginger”). Compare Burmese ချင်း (hkyang:).

Han compound

The Mengshe Barbarians use pepper, ginger, and cinnamon to boil as a drink.

Tang Dynasty, Fan Chuo, Manshu, chapter 7, part 7

Méngshè Mán yǐ jiāo, jiāng, guì hé pēng ér yǐn zhī.

蒙舍蠻以椒、薑、桂和烹而飲之。

蒙舍蛮以椒、姜、桂和烹而饮之。


蘿

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *raːl): semantic 艸 + phonetic 羅 (OC *raːl).


蝽

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən⁵⁵/


蝴

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡaː): semantic 虫 (“insect”) + phonetic 胡 (OC *ɡaː).


蟶

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *l̥ʰeŋ): semantic 虫 + phonetic 聖 (OC *hljeŋs).

Han compound

a razor clam, in particular a Chinese razor clam (Sinonovacula constricta) (Classifier: 敉 mn)


蝮

Possibly related to 伏 (OC *bɯɡ, “to lie down”) (Schuessler, 2007). Alternatively, it may be related to Proto-Sino-Tibetan *bəw (“insect; snake”) (Schuessler, 2007).


蠔

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 虫 + phonetic 豪 (OC *ɡaːw).


蠣

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *m·rads): semantic 虫 (“insect; bug; creature”) + phonetic 厲 (OC *m·rads).


蠍

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qʰad): semantic 虫 + phonetic 歇 (OC *qʰad).

Han compound

蠍子

蝎子


褂

/kʷʰaː³³⁻³⁵/

/kʷʰaː³³⁻³⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 衣 (“clothes”) + phonetic 卦.


蒜

→ Lisu: ꓢꓪꓮꓠꓸ (swɑ́n)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sloːns): semantic 艸 + phonetic 祘 (OC *sloːns).
Matisoff considers this to be derived from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *swa-n (“garlic”), but more likely this may be a plant imported from the Western Regions in the Qin–Han era. The relatively late attestation and the earlier form of 卵蒜 (luǎnsuàn) attest to the latter theory.
Compare Sanskrit लशुन (laśuna), Pali lasuṇa, lasuna. The Old Chinese reconstruction was revised to a *-or rhyme in the Baxter–Sagart system, akin to its homophone 算 (“to calculate”). Hence compare Persian سیر (sir, “garlic”), Khotanese sārmā- (“the plant Basella cordifolia or B. lucida or B. rubra”), Hungarian sárma (“Ornithogalum sp.”), as well as Turkish sarımsak, Mongolian саримс (sarims).
Either way this word is cognate with the second syllable of Burmese ကြက်သွန် (krakswan, “onion”), ကြက်သွန်ဖြူ (krakswanhpru, “garlic”).


襇

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn²¹⁴/

/t͡ɕi̯ɛn²¹⁴/


袍

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *buː): semantic 衣 (“clothing”) + phonetic 包 (OC *pruː).

Han compound

(Chinese-style) long gown, robe, or cloak


蠶

Bodman (1980) relates this to Tibetan སྡོམ (sdom, “spider”). Perhaps cognate to 蔪 (OC *zamʔ, “to entwine”) (Schuessler, 2007), as well as 縶 (OC *tib, “to rope, tether, bind”), with these terms deriving from a Proto-Sino-Tibetan *tip ~ *tu(p/m) (“to wrap up”), whence Burmese ထုပ် (htup, “to wrap, bundle”) (STEDT). The silkworm would thus be seen as a "wrapping (bug)", which is particularly apt when considering the process of sericulture.

der

蚕
𧉏
蝅
𧑯
𧌩
䗝
䗞
䘉
𧕽
𧖟
蠺


蠅

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *b·lɯŋ): semantic 虫 (“insect”) + phonetic 黽 (OC *mlenʔ, *mliŋʔ, *mreːŋʔ).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-b-(r/j)aŋ (“fly; bee”). Compare 虻 (OC mˁraŋ, “"horsefly"”), Tibetan སྦྲང་བུ (sbrang bu, “bee”), Burmese ယင် (yang, “fly”), Chepang याङ् (“insect; fly”), Japhug ɣʑo (“bee”) (STEDT; Coblin, 1986; Benedict, 1972; Schuessler, 2007; Zhang, Jacques, and Lai, 2019).


裙

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (裙):
* → Vietnamese: quần (裙)

/t͡ɕʰyə̯ɻ³⁵/

/t͡ɕʰyə̯ɻ³⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡlun): semantic 衤 (“clothing”) + phonetic 君 (OC *klun).

Han compound

skirt; apron; dress; petticoat (Classifier: 條／条 c)


襖

→? Proto-Bahnaric: *ʔaːw (“shirt”)

Bahnar: ao (“shirt”)

→? Khmer: អាវ (ʼaaw)

desc

→? Proto-Vietic: *ʔaːwʔ (“upper garment”)

Vietnamese: áo

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *quːʔ, *quːʔ): semantic 衣 (“clothing”) + phonetic 奧 (OC *quːɡs).


褲

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kʰʷaːs): semantic 衣 (“clothing”) + phonetic 庫 (OC *kʰaːs).

Han compound

pants; trousers (Classifier: 條／条 c; 領／领 mn)


襪

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *mad): semantic 衣 (“clothing”) + phonetic 蔑 (OC *meːd, *meːd).

Han compound

袜
韤
韈
𥀯
韎
𤿗
𥿉
帓
𤿖
靺

sock; stocking (Classifier: 隻／只 c; 對／对 c)


詈

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): 网 (“net”) + 言 (“speech; word”).

(literary or Northern Min, Hokkien) to curse; to scold; to abuse verbally


諫

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kraːns): semantic 言 (“say”) + phonetic 柬 (OC *kreːnʔ).


豇

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kroːŋ): semantic 豆 (“bean”) + phonetic 工 (OC *koːŋ).


貅

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qʰu): semantic 豸 + phonetic 休 (OC *qʰu).

Han compound

The pixiu: they look like tigers; some say they look like bears; their furs are colored ashen white. People in Liaodong call them white brown bears. The male is called pí, and the female xiū; that was why ancient people many times mentioned them together.

1917, 徐珂 (Xu Ke), 《清稗類鈔》 (Categorized anthology of petty matters from the Qing period).

Píxiū, xíng sì hǔ, huò yuē sì xióng, máo sè huībái. Liáodōng rén wèi zhī báipí. Xióngzhě yuē pí, cízhě yuē xiū, gù gǔrén duō lián jǔ zhī.

貔貅，形似虎，或曰似熊，毛色灰白。遼東人謂之白羆。雄者曰貔，雌者曰貅，故古人多連舉之。

貔貅，形似虎，或曰似熊，毛色灰白。辽东人谓之白罴。雄者曰貔，雌者曰貅，故古人多连举之。

(Chinese mythology) female panther-like feline; female counterpart of 貔 (pí)


貔

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *bi): semantic 豸 + phonetic 𣬉 ().
Probably Sino-Tibetan; compare Tibetan དབྱི (dbyi, “lynx”) (Schuessler, 2007).
Schuessler also sees possible cognacy with pi ~ byi in Tibetan པི་ཤི (pi shi) and བྱི་ལ (byi la), though pi ~ byi might be derived from Indic (cf. Hindi बिल्ला (billā) < Sanskrit बिडाल (biḍāla); see the Sanskrit word for ultimate non-Indic etymology); even so, pi ~ byi is still possibly native Tibetan if པི་ཤི (pi shi)'s shi was from earlier *zhi and cognate with 狸 (OC *rɯ), see there for more (ibid.).

Making strong his walls, and deep his moats,
Laying out his fields, regulating his revenues,
Presenting his skins of the panthers,
With those of the red leopards and the yellow brown bears.

Shí yōng shí hè, shí mǔ shí jí, xiàn qí pí pí, chì bào huáng pí.

實墉實壑，實畝實籍，獻其貔皮，赤豹黃羆。

实墉实壑，实亩实籍，献其貔皮，赤豹黄罴。

Exert yourselves, officers — you shall be martial and imposing! Be like tigers, like panthers, like black bears, like brown bears!

The Book of Documents, circa 7ᵗʰ – 4ᵗʰ centuries BCE

Xù zāi fūzǐ! Shàng huánhuán rú hǔ, rú pí, rú xióng, rú pí!

勖哉夫子！尚桓桓如虎、如貔、如熊、如羆！

勖哉夫子！尚桓桓如虎、如貔、如熊、如罴！


豺

/t͡sʰaːi̯²¹/

/t͡sʰaːi̯²¹/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *zrɯː): semantic 豸 (“creature”) + phonetic 才 (OC *zlɯː, *zlɯːs).

Han compound

When the dhole sacrificed its prey, the hunting commenced.

豺祭獸，然後田獵。

豺祭兽，然后田猎。

豺狼

豺狗


豨

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *hlɯl, *hlɯlʔ): semantic 豕 (“pig”) + phonetic 希 (OC *hlɯl).
Dialectal variant of 豕 (OC *hliʔ, “pig”).

Han compound

(obsolete or Northern Min, Datian Min, Central Min) pig; hog; swine


財

/t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹/

/t͡sʰɔːi̯²¹/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *zlɯː): semantic 貝 (“shell”) + phonetic 才 (OC *zlɯː, *zlɯːs). 才 is also a reference to one's abilities, hence intellectual resources; in this particular syllable, the abilities are probably thought as financial possibilities and resources.

Han compound

A nobleman makes fortune in a noble way.

君子愛財，取之有道。

君子爱财，取之有道。


躺

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *tʰaːŋʔ): semantic 身 (“body”) + phonetic 尚 (OC *djaŋ, *djaŋs).

Han compound

躺在床上


迁

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵/

For pronunciation and definitions of 迁 – see 遷 (“to ascend; to go up; to promote; to be promoted; etc.”).
(This character is the simplified and variant form of 遷).
 Notes:
Simplified Chinese is mainly used in Mainland China, Malaysia, and Singapore.
Traditional Chinese is mainly used in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.


輛

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *raŋs): semantic 車 (“vehicle”) + phonetic 兩 (OC *raŋʔ, *raŋs).

Han compound

一輛車

一辆车

一輛跑車

一辆跑车

Classifier for wheeled vehicles. ⇒ all nouns using this classifier


郊

/t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kreːw): phonetic 交 (OC *kreːw) + semantic 阝.


釓

For pronunciation and definitions of 釓 – see 釚 (“crossbow latch; unnilennium”).
(This character is a variant form of 釚).


釔

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 乙 (yǐ).


釷

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 土 (tǔ).
Borrowed from New Latin thorium.


釹

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 女 (nǚ).
From New Latin neodymium.


鈦

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 太 (tài).
Borrowed from New Latin titanium.


鈥

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 火 (OC *qʰʷaːlʔ).
Borrowed from New Latin holmium.


鉬

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 目 (mù).
From New Latin molybdaenum.


銥

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 衣 (yī)


銩

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 丢 ().
Borrowed from New Latin thūlium.


鋱

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 忒 (OC *l̥ʰɯːɡ).
Borrowed from New Latin terbium.


鋰

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 里.
Borrowed from New Latin lithium.


鍀

(Mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore) technetium (Tc)


錳

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 孟.
From New Latin manganum.


鐦

For pronunciation and definitions of 鐦 – see 魁 (“first; leading; best; chief; leader; head; etc.”).
(This character is a variant form of 魁).


鐠

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 普 (OC *pʰaːʔ).
From New Latin praseodymium.


鐿

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 意 (OC *qɯɡs).
Borrowed from New Latin ytterbium.


鑥

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 魯 (OC *raːʔ, “lǔ”).
From New Latin lutetium.


錨

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 金 (“metal”) + phonetic 苗 (OC *mrew).


閆

From the cursive script form of 閻. 闫 was adopted as the simplified form of 閻 in the second round of simplified Chinese characters.
From 閻. After the retraction of the second round of simplification in Mainland China, some people have continued to use 闫 as their surname, but others have changed it to 阎, separating the two variants of the same surname into two different surnames.


隑

Many Wu lects pronounce this term as /ŋe/, which is derived from lenition of 徛 (/ɡe/)

(Wu, chiefly Southern, Western and Linshao Wu) to stand


雯

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *mɯn): semantic 雨 + phonetic 文 (OC *mɯn).
From 文 (OC *mɯn, “mark; design; pattern”).


韆

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn⁵⁵/


鞦

/t͡ɕʰi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵/

/t͡ɕʰi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵/

(in compounds or dialectal) swing (hanging seat)


靴

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *hʷa): semantic 革 (“leather”) + phonetic 化 (OC *hŋʷraːls).

Han compound

鞾
𩎁
韡
𩍇
𡲲
㞜
𩋖
𩋾
𩍍


霰

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *sjar (“hail; sleet”); compare Tibetan སེར (ser, “hail”), Western Tamang सेर (“hail”) (STEDT; Hill, 2014; Schuessler, 2024).

inh

䨘
䨷
𩄧
𩆥
𩅤
𩃝
𩃂
𩆵


靨

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qeb): phonetic 厭 (OC *qemʔ, *qems, *qeb) + semantic 面 (“face”).


鞍

→ Proto-Tai: *ʔaːnᴬ

Thai: อาน (aan)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qaːn) and ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): semantic 革 (“leather”) + 安 (“secure”).


韭

/t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯²¹⁴/

/t͡ɕi̯əu̯⁴¹/

/t͡ɕi̯oʊ̯²¹⁴/

/t͡ɕi̯əu̯⁴¹/

Pictogram (象形) – leek in the ground (一).

Allium tuberosum
Allium tuberosum#Translingual

garlic chives; Chinese chives; Chinese leek (Allium tuberosum)


顴

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵/

/t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵/


顳

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *njeb): phonetic 聶 (OC *neb) + semantic 頁.

Han compound

(anatomy) Only used in 顳顬／颞颥 (nièrú, “temple; temporal bone”); also used as its short form.


雹

⇒ Zhuang: lwgbag

/tʰɔk̚³²⁻²¹/

/tʰɔk̚³²⁻²¹/

Characters in the same phonetic series (勹) (Zhengzhang, 2003)
Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *bruːɡ): semantic 雨 (“rain”) + phonetic 包 (OC *pruː).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *m-bru(ŋ/k) (“dragon; thunder”), whence also 龍 (OC *b·roŋ, *mroːŋ, “dragon”) (STEDT).


饅

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *moːn): semantic 食 + phonetic 曼 (OC *moːn, *mons).
Possibly related to Burmese မုန့် (mun., “snack”).


顆

一顆珠子

一颗珠子

In the sky of history blink a few stars; in the human world gallops a heroic spirit hither and thither.

1994, 王健 Wang Jian (lyricist), 谷建芬 Gu Jianfen (composer), "The Sky of History"《歷史的天空》

Lìshǐ de tiānkōng shǎnshuò jǐ kē xīng; rénjiān yī gǔ yīngxióng qì zài chíchěng zònghéng.

歷史的天空閃爍幾顆星；人間一股英雄氣在馳騁縱橫。

历史的天空闪烁几颗星；人间一股英雄气在驰骋纵横。

Classifier for small round objects. ⇒ all nouns using this classifier


驐

(dated or dialectal) to castrate an animal


騾

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *roːl): semantic 馬 (“horse”) + phonetic 累 (OC *ruːls, *rolʔ, *rols). Written as 驘 in Shuowen.

Han compound

骡
*驘
*臝
䯁
𩦻
𩧣

Viscount Jian of Zhao had two white mules which he liked very much.

Lü Buwei, Master Lü's Spring and Autumn Annals, 239 BCE

Zhào Jiǎnzǐ yǒu liǎng bái luó ér shèn ài zhī.

趙簡子有兩白騾而甚愛之。

赵简子有两白骡而甚爱之。

mule (offspring of a donkey and a horse, sometimes specifically the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse) (Classifier: 匹 m; 頭／头 m; 隻／只 mn)


驢

→ Vietnamese: lừa

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *b·ra): semantic 馬 (“horse”) + phonetic 盧 (OC *b·raː).

Han compound

donkey; ass (Classifier: 頭／头 m; 條／条 m; 匹 m; 隻／只 c mn)


髻

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kiːds): semantic 髟 (“long hair”) + phonetic 吉 (OC *klid).
From 結 (OC *kiːd, “to tie”) + exopassive nominal suffix *-s, literally “something tied” (Baxter and Sagart, 1997, 2014; Schuessler, 2007).


鬍

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 髟 (“hair”) + phonetic 胡 (OC *ɡaː).
From 胡 (OC *ɡaː, “wattle; dewlap of an animal”), i.e. “that which hangs down from the chin” (Wang, 1980).
STEDT proposes that this word comes from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-wu (“beard”), but there are phonological problems with this reconstruction.


魷

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 魚 (“fish”) + phonetic 尤 (OC *ɢʷɯ).

Han compound

Only used in 魷魚／鱿鱼 (yóuyú, “squid”); also used as its short form.


鰍

/t͡ɕʰi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰi̯əu̯³³/

/t͡ɕʰi̯əu̯³³/

/t͡ɕʰi̯oʊ̯⁵⁵/

/t͡sʰi̯əu̯³³/

/t͡ɕʰi̯əu̯³³/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *sʰɯw): semantic 魚 + phonetic 秋 (OC *sʰɯw).


鱷

→? Proto-Tai: *ŋɯəkᴰ (“crocodile”)

Ahom: 𑜂𑜢𑜤𑜀𑜫 (ṅük, “crocodile; nāga”)

desc

Lao: ເງືອກ (ngư̄ak, “merperson; electric eel”)

Shan: ငိူၵ်ႈ (ngōek, “alligator; crocodile”)

Thai: เงือก (ngʉ̂ʉak, “snake; nāga; crocodilian; mythical water creature; merperson”)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ŋaːɡ): semantic 魚 (“fish”) + phonetic 噩 (OC *ŋaːɡ).
Within Chinese, Carr (1990) relates it to:
* 咢 (OC *ŋaːɡ, “to beat the drum”), either because drumming was associated with dragons or because some drums were made of crocodilian skins (Schuessler, 2007).
* Words for “fear”, e.g. 愕 (OC *ŋaːɡ, “startled; terrified”), 噩 (OC *ŋaːɡ, “frightening; startling”).
Outside of Chinese, Carr (1990) also relates it to:
* Proto-Tai *ŋwak (“mythical water creature”) (reconstruction from Chamberlain, 1977), which Pittayaporn (2009-2010), reconstructing the root as *ŋɯəkᴰ (“crocodile”), holds to be a loan from Chinese.
* Proto-Austro-Tai *(m)baŋiwak (“shark; crocodile”), posited by Paul K. Benedict and proposed by him to give rise to the Tai word, as well as Japanese 鰐(わに) (wani, “crocodilian; shark”), 魚(うお) (uo, “fish”).
Vovin (2021) notes that 鱷 (OC *ŋâk ~ *ŋɑk) "aquatic reptile, saltwater crocodile" was attested late, for the first time in Shuowen as 𧊜 (è); and that "it would be very weird if the word for a ‘saltwater crocodile’ from the middle of Huang-he (黃河) river basin that lies quite far away from both tropics and the sea would be borrowed by Tai languages in Southern China". Therefore, Vovin contends that, instead, 鱷 (OC *ŋâk ~ *ŋɑk) had been borrowed into Later Han Chinese from Tai.


鯽

Carassius auratus
Carassius auratus#Translingual


鴕

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *l'aːl): semantic 鳥 (“bird”) + phonetic 它 (OC *l̥ʰaːl).


鴦

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qaːŋ, *qaŋ): phonetic 央 (OC *qaŋ) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”).

Han compound

鴛鴦

鸳鸯


鴣

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kaː): phonetic 古 (OC *kaːʔ) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”).


鷥

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *slɯ): phonetic 絲 (OC *slɯ) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”)


鱉

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ped): phonetic 敝 (OC *beds, *bed) + semantic 魚.

Han compound

Pelodiscus sinensis
Wikispecies:Pelodiscus sinensis

soft-shell turtle (any turtle in the family Trionychidae, especially Pelodiscus sinensis)


鶉

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵/

/ʈ͡ʂʰu̯ən³⁵/

The quails run [in pairs]. The magpies fly [in pairs]. That man is not nice. I call him brother.

Chún zhī bēnbēn, què zhī jiāngjiāng. Rén zhī wú liáng, wǒ yǐ wéi xiōng.

鶉之奔奔，鵲之彊彊。人之無良，我以為兄。

鹑之奔奔，鹊之彊彊。人之无良，我以为兄。

quail (originally refers to those with spots on feathers)


鷗

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qoː): phonetic 區 (OC *qoː, *kʰo) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”).


鵬

CJKV/code

Sino-Xenic (鵬):
* → Korean: 붕(鵬) (bung)
* → Vietnamese: bằng (鵬)

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *bɯːŋ) and ideogrammic compound (會意／会意): phonetic 朋 (OC *bɯːŋ, “phoenix”) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”)
This has been related to 風 (OC *plum, “wind”) (Schuessler, 2007) and also by Wang (1982) to 鳳 (OC *bums, “male fenghuang”).

Han compound

I don't know how many thousand li the Pengʹs back is.

鵬之背，不知其幾千里也。

鹏之背，不知其几千里也。

(Chinese mythology) peng (enormous bird)


鷸

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɢʷid): phonetic 矞 (OC *ɢʷid) + semantic 鳥.


鷹

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) and phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qɯŋ): phonetic 䧹 (OC *qɯŋ, “eagle; hawk”) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”).
This word is possibly related to Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-la(ŋ/k) (“bird of prey”), which is likely a loan from Proto-Mon-Khmer *laŋ ~ *laaŋ ~ *laiŋ (“large raptor”) > Proto-Bahnaric *klaːŋ (“hawk”), Proto-Palaungic *klaːŋ (“kite”), Mon လနေၚ် (“kite”), Khmer ខ្លែង (khlaeng, “kite”); within Tibeto-Burman, compare Tibetan གླག (glag, “eagle; vulture”), Burmese လင်းတ (lang:ta., “vulture”), Jingpho lang (“bird of the falcon family”) (Benedict, 1972; STEDT).
This word agrees better with Tibetan སྐྱིང་སེར (skying ser, “eagle; vulture”) if the Old Chinese is reconstructed as *s-ki̯əŋ (Benedict, 1990; Schuessler, 2007); Benedict (1976) reconstructs Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-kiŋ for this, which Benedict (1990) suggests is the native Sino-Tibetan root.

cog

禿鷹

秃鹰

雀鷹

雀鹰

貓頭鷹

猫头鹰

a bird of prey of Accipitriformes (eagles, hawks, kites, vultures), Falconiformes (falcons) or Strigiformes (owls)


鸚

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qreːŋ): phonetic 嬰 (OC *qeŋ) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *ɣrēŋ (“a kind of parrot”); cognate with Jingpho [script needed] (ukhriŋ¹, “small parrot”) (Peiros & Starostin, 1996).


鷺

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *raːɡs): phonetic 路 (OC *ɡ·raːɡs) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”).
Compare Khmer ក្រក (krɑɑk, “species of heron”), Thai ร้า (ráa, “species of heron”) (Schuessler, 2007).


齉

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 鼻 + phonetic 囊 (OC *naːŋ).

(of nose) blocked, causing one to speak with a nasal twang; snuffling


鰻

→ Indonesian: mua

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *moːn, *mons): semantic 魚 (“fish”) + phonetic 曼 (OC *moːn, *mons) – a kind of fish.

Han compound

鳗
𩺴
𩻠
*⿰魚昘
*⿰魚𭦗
*⿰魚𭦟
*⿰鱼⿳⺜𠀃勹


鵝

→ Guiqiong: wo

/ᵑɡᵘɔ²²⁻²²⁵/

/ᵑɡᵘɔ²²⁻²²⁵/

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ŋaːl): phonetic 我 (OC *ŋaːlʔ) + semantic 鳥.
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *ŋa-n (“goose”); cognate with Tibetan ངང་པ (ngang pa), Burmese ငန်း (ngan:). However, the final consonants of the proposed cognates are possibly irreconcilable; they could instead be independently coined through onomatopoeia (Schuessler, 2007; Hill, 2019).
Related to 雁 (OC *ŋraːns, “wild goose”); see there for more.

Han compound

domestic goose (as opposed to a wild goose – 雁 (yàn)) (Classifier: 隻／只 m c mn)


鴉

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *qraː): phonetic 牙 (OC *ŋraː) + semantic 鳥 (“bird”).
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *ka-n (“crow”). Doublet of 烏 (OC *qaː, “crow; raven”) . The Middle Chinese of 鴉 retains the earlier vowel.
Schuessler (2007) disputes Old Chinese reconstructions with medial *-r-, reasoning that 鴉's place among Division II syllables (often from Old Chinese syllables containing *-r-) results rather from archaism which preserves the original vowel's quality.

Han compound

Men eat animals that have been fed on grain and grass; elaphures feed on the thick-set grass; centipedes enjoy small snakes; owls and crows delight in mice; but does any one of the four know the right taste?

Zhuangzi, circa 3ʳᵈ – 2ⁿᵈ centuries BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Mín shí chúhuàn, mílù shí jiàn, jíqiě gān dài, chīyā qí shǔ, sì zhě shú zhī zhèngwèi?

民食芻豢，麋鹿食薦，蝍且甘帶，鴟鴉耆鼠，四者孰知正味？

民食刍豢，麋鹿食荐，蝍且甘带，鸱鸦耆鼠，四者孰知正味？

Withered vines, an old tree, evening crows; small bridges, flowing stream, family houses.

13ᵗʰ century – 14ᵗʰ century, 馬致遠 (Ma Zhiyuan), 秋思 (Autumn Thoughts)

Kūténg lǎoshù hūnyā, xiǎoqiáo liúshuǐ rénjiā.

枯藤老樹昏鴉，小橋流水人家。

枯藤老树昏鸦，小桥流水人家。


𨭆

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 釒 (“metal”) + phonetic 黑.


䥑

For pronunciation and definitions of 䥑 – see 錽 (“a kind of decoration on a horse's head”).
(This character is a variant form of 錽).
Borrowed from English meitnerium, via Mandarin.


𠀊

From part of 大 (“big”) and part of 小 (“small”) – not big, not small.

(Zhejiang Wu, including Jiande Wu, Ningbonese and Shaoxing Wu, of people or animals) not big but not small; medium; intermediate


䈆

a shallow and long bamboo container with large holes


𨨏

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 釒 (“metal”) + phonetic 波.


𨧀

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 釒 (“metal”) + phonetic 杜.
Borrowed from New Latin dubnium.


鿬

Coined in 2017 by the Chinese National Committee for Terms in Sciences and Technologies and State Language Commission.


𠍲

(literary or dialectal) Alternative form of 渠 (qú, “third-person pronoun; he, she, it”)


𧟰

Ligature of 勿要. Compare Mandarinic 嫑 (báo).


𢜶

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声): semantic 心 (“heart”) + phonetic 叜 (OC *sluːʔ).


𬁭

飯𬁭吃勒？

饭𬁭吃勒？


䚭

The buffalo threw me down with its horns.

⁵sy-gnieu ⁶nau ⁶ngu ¹shioe-tau ⁸laq ⁶di ⁶laon

水牛拿我䚭倒辣地浪。


𨂞

𨂝𨂞勿動

𨂝𨂞勿动

(Shanghainese) to crawl due to inability to walk


𧤼

(Shanghainese) horn of a bovine or ovine animal


𣥼

1998, 溫州方言詞典 by You Rujie and Yang Qianming, page 58

該恁多菜一個大碗𣥼落顯，𧟰逮兩個瑣碗𪏳起，洗煩顯。

该恁多菜一个大碗𣥼落显，𧟰逮两个琐碗𪏳起，洗烦显。

(chiefly Linshao, Yongjiang, Taizhou, Jinhua and Chuqu Wu) to put into a container; to fill a container with