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in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Translingual
Stroke order
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Han character
初 (Kangxi radical 18, 刀+5, 7 strokes, cangjie input 中尸竹 (LSH), four-corner 37220, composition ⿰衤刀)
Derived characters
- 𢮀, 𦁅, 𫋶, 𪯨, 𭝘, 𤙟, 𤯦, 𠸗, 𩷞, 𪁲, 𠠭
References
- Kangxi Dictionary: page 137, character 33
- Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 1911
- Dae Jaweon: page 310, character 1
- Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 327, character 22
- Unihan data for U+521D
Chinese
Glyph origin
Ideogrammic compound (會意/会意) : 衤 (“clothes”) + 刀 (“knife; to cut”) – start making clothes by cutting the cloth.
The various 𢀰-shaped glyphs are or are evolved from Zetian characters.
Pronunciation
- Mandarin
- Cantonese
- Gan
- Hakka
- Jin
- Northern Min
- Eastern Min
- Puxian Min
- Southern Min
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Taipei, Sanxia, Kinmen, Magong, Hsinchu, Singapore)
- (Hokkien: Zhangzhou, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Taichung, Yilan)
- (Hokkien: Sanxia)
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, General Taiwanese, Singapore)
Note:
- chhoe/chhe - vernacular;
- chho͘ - literary.
Note:
- ciu1 - only when referring to days 1-10 of the month in the Chinese calendar;
- co1 - all other senses.
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
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Character
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初
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Reading #
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1/1
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Modern Beijing (Pinyin)
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chū
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Middle Chinese
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‹ tsrhjo ›
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Old Chinese
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/*ʰra/
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English
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beginning
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Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system:
* Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence;
* Square brackets "" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. * as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p;
* Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix;
* Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary;
* Period "." indicates syllable boundary.
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Zhengzhang system (2003)
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Character
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初
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Reading #
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1/1
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No.
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1589
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Phonetic component
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初
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Rime group
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魚
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Rime subdivision
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0
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Corresponding MC rime
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初
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Old Chinese
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/*sʰra/
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Definitions
初
- initial; inceptive
- 初夏 ― chūxià ― early summer
- first
- 初雪 ― chūxuě ― first snow
- 初戀/初恋 ― chūliàn ― first love
- prefix of dates from 1st to 10th in the Chinese calendar
- 初三 ― chūsān ― third day of a lunar month
- original
- 初衷 ― chūzhōng ― one’s initial intention; original idea
- elementary; basic
- 初級/初级 ― chūjí ― elementary
- beginning; start
- 四月初 ― sìyuè chū ― early April
- 民初 ― mínchū ― beginning of the Republic of China era
- just
- 初出茅廬/初出茅庐 ― chūchūmáolú ― to have just begun one's career without any experience (literally, “to have just come out of one's thatched cottage”)
- 如夢初醒/如梦初醒 ― rúmèngchūxǐng ― to suddenly realize; to wake up to reality (literally, “as if one has just waken up from a dream”)
Compounds
Descendants
References
Japanese
Kanji
初
(Fourth grade kyōiku kanji)
Readings
- Go-on: そ (so)
- Kan-on: しょ (sho, Jōyō)
- Kun: はじめ (hajime, 初め, Jōyō)、はじめて (hajimete, 初めて, Jōyō)、はつ (hatsu, 初, Jōyō)、うい (ui, 初, Jōyō)←うひ (ufi, 初, historical)、そめる (someru, 初める, Jōyō)、うぶ (ubu, 初)
- Nanori: し (shi)、もと (moto)
Compounds
Etymology 1
⟨patu⟩ → /ɸat͡su/ → /hat͡su/
From Old Japanese.
Possible cognates include 始め (hajime, “beginning”) and 端 (ha, “edge of something”).
Pronunciation
Prefix
初 • (hatsu-)
- the first..., initial..., new...
Derived terms
Noun
初 • (hatsu)
- a first, start, a beginning
- Antonym: 末 (sue)
- 今年初のコンサート ― kotoshi hatsu no konsāto ― the first concert of this year
- (slang) first sexual relations, one's first time
Derived terms
Etymology 2
/uɸi/ → /uwi/ → /ui/
First attested in the Kokin Wakashū of roughly 905-914 CE,[2] and assumed to be inherited from Old Japanese.
There is an apparently related term 初 (ubu) of overlapping synonymous meaning, first attested in the early 1000s. It is unclear how these two terms are related: one might be a derivation of the other, or the two might derive separately via other processes.
Both ui and ubu appear to be related to verb 生む (umu, “to birth”), from the sense of "first of something since one has been born".
Martin suggests that this might be a fusion of 生む (umu, “to birth”) + 日 (hi, “day”), literally “birthday”.[3] However, the meaning of any such compound would be the noun birthday with a sense of "the day a woman gives birth" rather than "the day someone is born". Also, phonologically, this would be expected to result in ubi: /umu/ + /pi/ → /umupi/ → /umpi/ → /ubi/.
Possibly cognate with 上 (ue, “above”, possibly via the sense of "upstream → earlier") or classical verb 生ふ (ancient opu, classical ofu, modern ou, “to grow”).
Pronunciation
Noun
初 • (ui) ←うひ (ufi)?
- a first, start
Derived terms
Prefix
初 • (ui-) ←うひ (ufi-)?
- the first of something
Derived terms
Etymology 3
From stem up- cognate with ui (historical uhi) above. Cause of the shift in voicing is uncertain. (Can this(+) etymology be sourced?)
Pronunciation
Adjective
初 • (ubu) -na (adnominal 初な (ubu na), adverbial 初に (ubu ni))
- innocent
- inexperienced, green
Inflection
Stem forms
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Imperfective (未然形)
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初だろ
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うぶだろ
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ubu daro
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Continuative (連用形)
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初で
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うぶで
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ubu de
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Terminal (終止形)
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初だ
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うぶだ
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ubu da
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Attributive (連体形)
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初な
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うぶな
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ubu na
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Hypothetical (仮定形)
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初なら
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うぶなら
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ubu nara
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Imperative (命令形)
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初であれ
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うぶであれ
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ubu de are
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Key constructions
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Informal negative
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初ではない 初じゃない
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うぶではない うぶじゃない
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ubu de wa nai ubu ja nai
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Informal past
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初だった
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うぶだった
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ubu datta
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Informal negative past
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初ではなかった 初じゃなかった
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うぶではなかった うぶじゃなかった
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ubu de wa nakatta ubu ja nakatta
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Formal
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初です
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うぶです
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ubu desu
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Formal negative
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初ではありません 初じゃありません
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うぶではありません うぶじゃありません
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ubu de wa arimasen ubu ja arimasen
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Formal past
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初でした
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うぶでした
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ubu deshita
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Formal negative past
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初ではありませんでした 初じゃありませんでした
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うぶではありませんでした うぶじゃありませんでした
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ubu de wa arimasen deshita ubu ja arimasen deshita
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Conjunctive
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初で
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うぶで
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ubu de
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Conditional
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初なら(ば)
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うぶなら(ば)
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ubu nara (ba)
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Provisional
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初だったら
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うぶだったら
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ubu dattara
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Volitional
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初だろう
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うぶだろう
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ubu darō
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Adverbial
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初に
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うぶに
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ubu ni
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Degree
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初さ
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うぶさ
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ubusa
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Derived terms
Etymology 4
From Middle Chinese 初 (MC tsrhjo).
Compare Min Nan 初 (chho͘).
Affix
初 • (sho)
- beginning, start
- first, initial
Derived terms
Etymology 5
For pronunciation and definitions of 初 – see the following entry.
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(This term, 初, is an alternative spelling (uncommon) of the above term.)
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Etymology 6
Nominalization of 始め (hajime, “beginning, first”).
Proper noun
初 • (Hajime)
- a male given name
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
- ^ “初”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten] (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
- ^ Samuel E. Martin (1987) The Japanese Language Through Time, New Haven, London: Yale University Press, →ISBN
Korean
Hanja
初 (eumhun 처음 초 (cheo'eum cho))
- hanja form? of 초 (“beginning; start”)
Compounds
Okinawan
Kanji
初
(Fourth grade kyōiku kanji)
Readings
Etymology
From Proto-Ryukyuan *patu.
Cognate with Japanese 初 (hatsu-).
Pronunciation
Prefix
初 (hachi-)
- the first..., initial..., new...
Derived terms
Old Japanese
Etymology
From Proto-Japonic *patu.
Possible cognates include 始め (pazime, “beginning”), 僅か (patuka, “faint”), and 端 (pa, “edge of something”).
Prefix
初 (patu-) (kana はつ)
- the first..., initial..., new...
Derived terms
Derived terms
- 初秋風 (patuaki1kaze)
- 初聲 (patukowe)
- 泊瀨 (Patuse)
- 初垂り (patutari)
- 初鷹狩り (patu-to2gari)
- 初土 (patuni)
- 初子 (patune)
- 初萩 (patupagi2)
- 初花 (patupana)
- 初春 (patuparu)
- 初紅葉 (patu-momitiba)
- 初雪 (patuyuki1)
- 初麻 (patuwo)
- 初尾花 (patuwobana)
Descendants
Vietnamese
Han character
初: Hán Việt readings: sơ (楚徂切)[1][2][3]
初: Nôm readings: xưa[1][2][3][4][5], sơ[1][2][3][5], xơ[1][2][3], thơ[1][3][4], sờ[1]
Compounds
Adjective
初 • (sơ, xưa)
- chữ Hán form of sơ (“in the initial stage; primary; elementary”).
- Nôm form of xưa (“old; ancient”).
Noun
初 • (xưa)
- Nôm form of xưa (“a long time ago; old times”).
References