Origin unclear. Possibly depicts cracks on a shell or tree bark.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | kaep | [k]ˤr[a]p | 1st heavenly stem; fingernail |
說文解字
《說文》:“甲,東方之孟,陽气萌動。从木戴孚甲之象。一曰人頭宜為甲,甲象人頭。,古文甲,始於十,見於千,成於木之象。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 季旭昇《說文新證》p.957-958李学勤《字源》p.1270-1271漢語多功能字庫
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Components
Character Evolution
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | kuwng | kˤoŋ | work, effort |
說文解字
《說文》:“功,以勞定國也。从力,从工,工亦聲。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 漢語多功能字庫
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Original meaning: bear
Pictograph of a bear. Based on the original meaning "bear". The meaning of this character has shifted over time to mean "strong" and "ability, power". Original form of 熊.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | noj | nˤə | a kind of bear |
| nong | nˤə(ŋ) | a kind of bear | |
| nong | nˤə(ʔ) (~ *nˤəŋ) | able; ability |
說文解字
《說文》:“能,熊屬,足似鹿。从肉,聲。能獸堅中,故稱賢能,而彊壯稱能傑也。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 漢語多功能字庫季旭昇《說文新證》p.752
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Pictograph of a person with a line through their legs. Original meaning unclear.
Character Evolution
Component uses
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | kang | k-ŋˤaŋ | lift high |
說文解字
《說文》:“亢,人頸也。从大省,象頸脈形。頏,亢或从頁。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 漢語多功能字庫
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Traditional
Components
Character Evolution
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | dzrjangH | [dz]raŋ-s | form, appearance |
說文解字
《說文》:“狀,犬形也。从犬,爿聲。”
Sources
- Character origin
- 漢語多功能字庫
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)
Traditional
Components
Character Evolution
Historical Pronunciations
| Middle Chinese | Old Chinese | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter-Sagart | tsinH | [ts][i][n]-s | advance (v.) |
說文解字
登也。从辵,閵省聲。
Sources
- Character origin
- 漢語多功能字庫
- Readings & variants
- Unicode
- Historical pronunciations
- Baxter-Sagart
- Historical images
- Academia Sinica
- Etymology
- Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)