生

See also: 主 and 玍
生 U+751F, 生
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-751F
← 甞
[U+751E]
CJK Unified Ideographs 甠 →
[U+7520]
⽣ U+2F63, ⽣
KANGXI RADICAL LIFE
← ⽢
[U+2F62]
Kangxi Radicals ⽤ →
[U+2F64]

Translingual

Stroke order (Chinese)
5 strokes
Stroke order
(Chinese)
Stroke order
(Japan)

Han character

生 (Kangxi radical 100, 生+0, 5 strokes, cangjie input 竹手一 (HQM), four-corner 25100, composition ⿻𠂉土)

  1. Kangxi radical #100, ⽣.
  2. Shuowen Jiezi radical №215

Derived characters

See also

Further reading

Wikisource

  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 754, character 26
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 21670
  • Dae Jaweon: page 1162, character 4
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 4, page 2575, character 1
  • Unihan data for U+751F

Chinese

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 生
Shang Western Zhou Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Oracle bone script Bronze inscriptions Small seal script Transcribed ancient scripts

Ideogrammic compound (會意/会意) : 屮 (“bud”) + 一 (“ground”) – sprouting from the ground.

Etymology 1

simp. and trad.
生
alternative forms 𤯓

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-riŋ ~ s-r(j)aŋ (“to live; to be alive; to give birth; raw; green”). Cognate with Burmese ရှင် (hrang, “to live; alive”), Mizo hring (“to bear; to bring forth; to give birth to; green”).

Schuessler (2007) proposes that Proto-Sino-Tibetan *sriŋ is derived from the root *sri (“to exist”) (whence possibly Chinese 體 (OC *r̥ʰiːʔ, “body; shape; form”)) + *-ŋ (“terminative suffix”).

Both level tone and falling tone readings are found in Middle Chinese, but the latter has since been lost and is merged into the level-tone reading in modern dialects.

Related to 青 (OC *sʰleːŋ, “blue-green”), 蒼 (OC *sʰaːŋ, *sʰaːŋʔ, “dark blue; deep green”).

Derivatives: 性 (OC *sleŋs, “nature; character; personality; quality”), 姓 (OC *sleŋs, “family name”).

Pronunciation 1


Note:
  • saang1 - colloquial;
  • sang1 - literary.

  • Dialectal data
Variety Location 生
Mandarin Beijing /ʂəŋ⁵⁵/
Harbin /ʂəŋ⁴/
Tianjin /səŋ²¹/
Jinan /ʂəŋ²¹³/
Qingdao /ʂəŋ²¹³/
Zhengzhou /səŋ²⁴/
Xi'an /səŋ²¹/
Xining /sə̃⁴⁴/
Yinchuan /səŋ⁴⁴/
Lanzhou /ʂə̃n³¹/
Ürümqi /sɤŋ⁴⁴/
Wuhan /sən⁵⁵/
Chengdu /sən⁵⁵/
Guiyang /sen⁵⁵/
Kunming /sə̃⁴⁴/
Nanjing /sən³¹/
Hefei /sən²¹/
Jin Taiyuan /səŋ¹¹/
Pingyao /səŋ¹³/
/ʂʐ̩e̞¹³/
Hohhot /sə̃ŋ³¹/
Wu Shanghai /səŋ⁵³/
Suzhou /sã⁵⁵/
Hangzhou /sen³³/
Wenzhou /siɛ³³/
Hui Shexian /sʌ̃³¹/
/sɛ³¹/
Tunxi /ɕiɛ¹¹/
Xiang Changsha /sən³³/
Xiangtan /siẽ³³/
/sən³³/
Gan Nanchang /sɑŋ⁴²/
/sɛn⁴²/ ~意
Hakka Meixian /saŋ⁴⁴/
Taoyuan /sɑŋ²⁴/
Cantonese Guangzhou /sɐŋ⁵³/
/saŋ⁵³/
Nanning /saŋ⁵⁵/
Hong Kong /sɐŋ⁵⁵/
/saŋ⁵⁵/
Min Xiamen (Hokkien) /siŋ⁵⁵/
/sĩ⁵⁵/ ~死
/t͡sʰĩ⁵⁵/ ~肉
Fuzhou (Eastern Min) /saŋ⁴⁴/
Jian'ou (Northern Min) /saiŋ⁵⁴/ 學~
/t͡sʰaŋ⁵⁴/ ~熟
Shantou (Teochew) /seŋ³³/
/sẽ³³/
/t͡sʰẽ³³/
Haikou (Hainanese) /seŋ²³/
/sɔŋ²³/
/tɛ²³/ ~活
/sɛ²³/ 不熟

Rime
Character 生 生
Reading # 1/2 2/2
Initial (聲) 生 (21) 生 (21)
Final (韻) 庚 (109) 庚 (109)
Tone (調) Level (Ø) Departing (H)
Openness (開合) Open Open
Division (等) II II
Fanqie 所庚切 所敬切
Baxter sraeng sraengH
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang
/ʃˠæŋ/ /ʃˠæŋH/
Pan
Wuyun
/ʃᵚaŋ/ /ʃᵚaŋH/
Shao
Rongfen
/ʃaŋ/ /ʃaŋH/
Edwin
Pulleyblank
/ʂaɨjŋ/ /ʂaɨjŋH/
Li
Rong
/ʃɐŋ/ /ʃɐŋH/
Wang
Li
/ʃɐŋ/ /ʃɐŋH/
Bernard
Karlgren
/ʂɐŋ/ /ʂɐŋH/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex
shēng shèng
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex
sang1 sang3
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character 生 生 生
Reading # 1/3 2/3 3/3
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin)
shēng shēng shēng
Middle
Chinese
‹ sræng › ‹ sræng › ‹ srjæng ›
Old
Chinese
/*sreŋ/ (MC srj- > sr-; or *s.reŋ ?) /*sreŋ/ /*sreŋ/ (or *s.reŋ ?)
English bear, be born; live fresh, raw bear, be born; live

Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system:

* Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence;
* Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p;
* Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix;
* Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary;

* Period "." indicates syllable boundary.
Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character 生 生
Reading # 1/2 2/2
No. 11312 11322
Phonetic
component
生 生
Rime
group
耕 耕
Rime
subdivision
0 0
Corresponding
MC rime
生 生
Old
Chinese
/*sʰleːŋ/ /*sreŋs/

Definitions

生

  1. to live; to subsist; to exist
  2. to grow; to develop; to bud
  3. (transitive) to bear; to give birth; to bring up; to rear
    他妻子生了一對雙胞胎女孩。 [MSC, trad.]
    他妻子生了一对双胞胎女孩。 [MSC, simp.]
    Tā qīzǐ shēng le yī duì shuāngbāotāi nǚhái. [Pinyin]
    His wife gave birth to twin girls.
  4. to be born; to come into existence
    他生在中國。/他生在中国。  ―  Tā shēng zài zhōngguó.  ―  He was born in China.
  5. (dialectal) to lay (an egg)
    生蛋 [Cantonese]  ―  saang1 daan6-2 [Jyutping]  ―  to lay eggs
  6. pupil; disciple; student
    你作為全日制生必須定期上課。 [MSC, trad.]
    你作为全日制生必须定期上课。 [MSC, simp.]
    Nǐ zuòwèi quánrìzhì shēng bìxū dìngqī shàngkè. [Pinyin]
    As a full-time student, you should attend classes on a regular basis.
  7. (historical) scholar; Confucian scholar
  8. (opera) actor or male character
  9. Short for 先生 (xiānshēng, “gentleman”).
    1. (Cantonese, honorific, suffix) Short for 先生 (xiānshēng, “Mr.”).
      陳生/陈生 [Cantonese]  ―  can4 saang1 [Jyutping]  ―  Mr. Chan
  10. having life; live
    Synonym: 活
    規矩係死嘅,人係生嘅。 [Cantonese, trad.]
    规矩系死嘅,人系生嘅。 [Cantonese, simp.]
    kwai1 geoi2 hai6 sei2 ge3, jan4 hai6 saang1 ge3. [Jyutping]
    Rules are lifeless; humans are not.
    條魚啱啱喺條河度釣上嚟,仲係生嘅。 [Cantonese, trad.]
    条鱼啱啱喺条河度钓上嚟,仲系生嘅。 [Cantonese, simp.]
    tiu4 jyu4-2 ngaam1 ngaam1 hai2 tiu4 ho4 dou6 diu3 soeng5 lai4, zung6 hai6 saang1 ge3. [Jyutping]
    The fish was just caught with a hook and line from the river. It is still alive.
  11. life; existence; being; living
    殺生/杀生  ―  shāshēng  ―  to destroy a life
  12. fresh; not stale
  13. unripe
  14. raw; uncooked
    Antonym: 熟 (shú)
    生洋蔥/生洋葱  ―  shēng yángcōng  ―  raw onions
    我覺得呢塊肉仲係太生。 [Cantonese, trad.]
    我觉得呢块肉仲系太生。 [Cantonese, simp.]
    ngo5 gok3 dak1 ni1 faai3 juk6 zung6 hai6 taai3 saang1. [Jyutping]
    I think this piece of meat is too raw.
  15. (historical ethnography) uncultured; uncultivated; wild; uncivilized; savage
    生黎  ―  shēng Lí  ―  wild Li
  16. strange; unfamiliar
    生人  ―  shēngrén  ―  stranger
  17. mechanically; forcedly
  18. very; quite; extremely
    生怕  ―  shēngpà  ―  to fear; to be afraid of
  19. vivid; strong; forceful
  20. innate; natural; born with
  21. † The template Template:zh-original does not use the parameter(s):
    gloss=[[intelligence]]; [[natural]] [[endowment]]
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    Original form of 性 (xìng).
  22. living things; organism
  23. livelihood; subsistence
    謀生/谋生  ―  móushēng  ―  to make a living
  24. lifetime; all one's life
    來生/来生  ―  láishēng  ―  afterlife
  25. birthday; anniversary
    慶生/庆生  ―  qìngshēng  ―  to celebrate one's birthday
  26. to bring back to life; to revive; to rescue
  27. to generate; to breed; to create
  28. to manufacture; to produce
  29. to happen; to occur; to take place
  30. to catch (a disease)
    我生了什麼病?/我生了什么病?  ―  Wǒ shēng le shénme bìng?  ―  What disease have I got?
    生蛇 [Hokkien]  ―  seⁿ-chôa [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]  ―  to have shingles
  31. (transitive) to be infested by a parasite
    生跳蚤  ―  shēng tiàozǎo  ―  to be infested with fleas
    生蝨乸/生虱乸 [Cantonese]  ―  saang1 sat1 naa2 [Jyutping]  ―  to be infested with lice
  32. (Buddhism) to go into society; to be reincarnated
  33. (dialectal) to set up; to put in; to settle
  34. to light; to ignite (a fire)
    母親沒有生爐子。 [MSC, trad.]
    母亲没有生炉子。 [MSC, simp.]
    Mǔqīn méi yǒu shēng lúzi. [Pinyin]
    Mother did not light the stove.
  35. a surname
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • (antonym(s) of “uncultured”): 熟 (shú)

Pronunciation 2


Definitions

生

  1. (Cantonese) Only used in 架生

Etymology 2

simp. and trad.
生

From Mandarin 上.

Pronunciation


Definitions

生

  1. (music) Cantonese opera gongche notation for the note high do (1̇).
    Synonym: 仩 (shàng) (Kunqu)

Etymology 3

simp. and trad.
生

Phono-semantic matching of Japanese さん (-san).

Pronunciation


Definitions

生

  1. (Hong Kong, honorific, suffix) -san, when referring to a Japanese person
Synonyms

Compounds

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (生):

References

Japanese

Stroke order (Japan)
5 strokes
Stroke order
(Japan)

Kanji

生

(grade 1 “Kyōiku” kanji)

Readings

Compounds

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
生
なま
Grade: 1
kun’yomi

From Old Japanese. Numerous derivatives already in use in the Heian period.[1][2]

Pronunciation

Noun

生(なま) • (nama) 

  1. a raw, uncooked state
    肉(にく)を生(なま)のまま食(た)べると、腹(はら)を壊(こわ)すことがある。
    Niku o nama no mama taberu to, hara o kowasu koto ga aru.
    You may have a stomachache if you eat raw meat.
  2. Short for 生ビール (“draft beer”).

Prefix

生(なま) • (nama-) 

  1. (broadcasting) live
    生(なま)演奏(えんそう)
    namaensō
    live performance
  2. fresh, draft
    生(なま)クリーム
    nama kurīmu
    fresh cream
    生(なま)ビール
    nama bīru
    draft beer
  3. raw, uncooked, rare
    生(なま)卵(たまご)
    nama tamago
    a raw egg
  4. natural, unprocessed

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
生
せい
Grade: 1
kan’on

From Middle Chinese 生 (MC sraeng|sraengH, “alive; fresh; raw; unprocessed”). The 漢音 (kan'on) reading, so likely a later borrowing from Middle Chinese.

Pronunciation

Noun

生(せい) • (sei) 

  1. a living
    生(せい)を営(いとな)む
    sei o itonamu
    make a living
  2. life
    Synonym: 命 (inochi)
    生(せい)の喜(よろこ)び
    sei no yorokobi
    the joys of life

Pronoun

生(せい) • (sei) 

  1. (humble) I or me, the first person singular (used by males)

Suffix

生(せい) • (-sei) 

  1. a student
    中学(ちゅうがく)生(せい)、大学(だいがく)生(せい)、受験(じゅけん)生(せい)
    chūgakusei, daigakusei, jukensei
    middle-school student, university student, test-taking student → examinee
  2. (be) born in
    Antonym: 歿 (botsu, “died in”)
    1950(せんきゅうひゃくごじゅう)年(ねん)生(せい)
    sen-kyūhyaku-gojū-nen sei
    born in 1950

Derived terms

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
生
き
Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Likely a contraction from 生き (iki, “life, living; freshness”).[1]

Pronunciation

Noun

生(き) • (ki) 

  1. purity, a lack of any admixture, a state of being undiluted
    ウィスキーを生(き)で飲(の)む
    wisukī o ki de nomu
    drink whiskey straight

Prefix

生(き) • (ki-) 

  1. unrefined
    生(き)糸(いと)
    kiito
    raw silk
  2. pure, undefiled, unadulterated
    生(き)娘(むすめ)
    kimusume
    innocent young girl

Derived terms

Etymology 4

Kanji in this term
生
しょう
Grade: 1
goon

From Middle Chinese 生 (MC sraeng|sraengH). The 呉音 (goon) reading, so likely the initial borrowing from Middle Chinese.

Pronunciation

Affix

生(しょう) • (shō) 

  1. life; lifetime
Derived terms

See also

  • Appendix:Gikun Usage in Meiji Version of Japanese Bible/生

References

  1. Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典(新装版) [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  2. Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN

Korean

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 生 (MC sraeng|sraengH).

Historical readings

Pronunciation

Hanja

Wikisource 生 (eumhun 날 생 (nal saeng))

  1. Hanja form? of 생 (“raw; uncooked”).
  2. Hanja form? of 생 (“of life; to be born”).
  3. Hanja form? of 생 (“to produce”).

Compounds

References

  • 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전/電子字典.

Okinawan

Kanji

生

(grade 1 “Kyōiku” kanji)

Readings

  • On (unclassified): そー (sō)
  • Kun: っんまりゆん ('nmariyun, 生まりゆん); なすん (nasun, 生すん); いちちゅん (ichichun, 生ちちゅん); いかすん (ikasun, 生かすん)

Compounds

Vietnamese

Han character

生: Hán Việt readings: sinh[1][2][3][4], sanh (師(sư)庚(canh)切(thiết))[3][4]
生: Nôm readings: sanh[1][2][5][4][6][7], siêng[1][3][5][4][6][7], sinh[1][2][3][4][7], xinh[1][2][3][5], xênh[1][3][5], sống[1], xanh[1]

  1. chữ Hán form of sinh (“to produce; to yield; to give birth to”).
  2. chữ Hán form of sanh (“to be born”).
  3. Nôm form of siêng (“diligent; assiduous”).

Compounds

References

  1. Nguyễn (2014).
  2. Nguyễn et al. (2009).
  3. Trần (2004).
  4. Bonet (1899).
  5. Hồ (1976).
  6. Génibrel (1898).
  7. Taberd & Pigneau de Béhaine (1838).
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