望

Note that in simplified Chinese and Vietnamese scripts, 亡 is written with an upward hook. In Hong Kong and Taiwan (traditional Chinese script), 月 is written like 夕 with an extra slash below while 王 is written as 𡈼. In Mainland China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, the bottom component is written 王. Note that the standard Kangxi form is written ⿱⿰亡月𡈼.

望 (Kangxi radical 74, 月+7, 11 strokes, cangjie input 卜月竹土 (YBHG) or 卜月一土 (YBMG), four-corner 0710₄, composition ⿱⿰亡月王(GJKV) or ⿱⿰亡𱼀𡈼(HT))

• 𥊛, 𠻾, 𧫢, 𦹑, 𥲠, 𭩌

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 505, character 29
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 14368
• Dae Jaweon: page 884, character 23
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 3, page 2080, character 2
• Unihan data for U+671B
• Unihan data for U+FA93
• Unihan data for U+2F8D9

Historical forms of the character 望
Shang	Western Zhou
Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions

Originally written 𦣠, an ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) : 臣 (“eye”) + 𡈼 (“person standing on the ground”) – a person standing up and looking off into the distance. Later 月 (“moon”) was added to produce 朢.

The 臣 component is now written 亡, making the current form a phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *maŋ, *maŋs) : phonetic 亡 (OC *maŋ) + semantic 月 + semantic 𡈼.

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *mraŋ (“to see”). Cognate with Burmese မြင် (mrang).

望

1. to see; to watch (especially from a distance)

   眺望  ―  tiàowàng  ―  to watch from a vantage point

   • 吾視其轍亂，望其旗靡，故逐之。 [MSC, trad.]
     吾视其辙乱，望其旗靡，故逐之。 [MSC, simp.]

     From: Zuozhuan.

     Wú shì qí zhé luàn, wàng qí qí mǐ, gù zhú zhī. [Pinyin]

     Having seen the disorderly tracks they left behind and espied their low-hanging banners afar, I gave the order to pursue them.

   • 望之不似人君。 [Classical Chinese, trad. and simp.]

     From: Mencius, c. 4^th century BCE

     Wàng zhī bù sì rénjūn. [Pinyin]

     When I looked at him – even from a distance – I could not find a leader there.

2. (chiefly dialectal) to look; to look at

   東張西望／东张西望  ―  dōngzhāngxīwàng  ―  to look around

   我望嚟望去都望唔到喎！ [Cantonese, trad.]
   我望嚟望去都望唔到㖞！ [Cantonese, simp.]

   ngo⁵ mong⁶ lai⁴ mong⁶ heoi³ dou¹ mong⁶ m⁴ dou^3-2 wo³! [Jyutping]

   I kept looking but I still can't see it!

   望下嗰度！ [Cantonese]  ―  mong⁶ haa⁵ go² dou⁶! [Jyutping]  ―  Look over there!

   望左 [Cantonese]  ―  mong⁶ zo² [Jyutping]  ―  look left (found on roads in Hong Kong)

   • 含住個雞包仔　望住四寶雞扎 [Cantonese, trad.]
     含住个鸡包仔　望住四宝鸡扎 [Cantonese, simp.]

     From: 2001, 謝立文 (Brian Tse), 麥兜與雞 (theme song of My Life as McDull)

     ham⁴ zyu⁶ go³ gai¹ baau¹ zai², mong⁶ zyu⁶ sei³ bou² gai¹ zaat³ [Jyutping]

     With a chicken bun in my mouth, staring at the four-treasure chicken roll

3. to gaze at; to stare at

   • 舉頭望明月，低頭思故鄉。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     举头望明月，低头思故乡。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Tang Dynasty, 李白 (Li Bai), 靜夜思 ("Quiet Night Thought")

     Jǔtóu wàng míngyuè, dītóu sī gùxiāng. [Pinyin]

     I raise my head to gaze at the bright moon and bow my head to think of my hometown.

4. (figurative) to observe; to watch

   觀望／观望  ―  guānwàng  ―  to observe without taking action

5. to hope; to expect

   希望  ―  xīwàng  ―  to hope; to wish; to desire

   願望／愿望  ―  yuànwàng  ―  wish; desire

6. fame; reputation

   名望  ―  míngwàng  ―  fame

   威望  ―  wēiwàng  ―  prestige

7. location; locality

   郡望  ―  jùnwàng  ―  ancestral home; place of origin (of one's lineage)

   地望  ―  dìwàng  ―  geographical location; geography

8. (Chinese astronomy) the day or night of the full moon

   朔望月  ―  shuòwàngyuè  ―  synodic month

   • 壬戌之秋，七月既望，蘇子與客泛舟遊於赤壁之下。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     壬戌之秋，七月既望，苏子与客泛舟游于赤壁之下。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: 1082, Su Shi (蘇軾), The Red Wall: Summer (《前赤壁賦》). English translation by Herbert Allen Giles.

     Rénxū zhī qiū, qīyuè jìwàng, Sūzǐ yǔ kè fànzhōu yóu yú Chìbì zhī xià. [Pinyin]

     In the year 1081, the seventh moon just on the wane, I went with a friend on a boat excursion to the Red Wall.

• → Thai: มอง (mɔɔng, “watch, look”)

• “望”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎, 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–

(grade 4 “Kyōiku” kanji)

1. wish
2. hope
3. desire

• Go-on: もう (mō, Jōyō)^{←まう (mau, historical)}
• Kan-on: ぼう (bō, Jōyō)^{←ばう (bau, historical)}
• Kun: のぞむ (nozomu, 望む, Jōyō); のぞましい (nozomashii, 望ましい); のぞみ (nozomi); もち (mochi, 望)
• Nanori: のぞみ (nozomi); のぞむ (nozomu); み (mi); もち (mochi)

• 望(ぼう)遠(えん) (bōen): seeing at a distance
• 希(き)望(ぼう) (kibō): hope, wish, aspiration
• 絶(ぜつ)望(ぼう) (zetsubō): despair, hopelessness

望(のぞむ) • (Nozomu) 

1. a male given name

望(のぞみ) • (Nozomi) 

1. a female given name

From Middle Chinese 望 (MC mjangH). Recorded as Middle Korean 마ᇰ〯 (mǎng) (Yale: mǎng) in Hunmong Jahoe (訓蒙字會 / 훈몽자회), 1527.

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [ma̠(ː)ŋ]
• Phonetic hangul: [망(ː)]
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Wikisource 望 (eumhun 바랄 망 (baral mang))

1. Hanja form^? of 망 (“to desire; to expect; to hope”).
2. Hanja form^? of 망 (“to gaze; to look”).
3. Hanja form^? of 망 (“to admire; to respect”).
4. Hanja form^? of 망 (“to peek; to peep”).

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

望: Hán Nôm readings: vọng

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