寸

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See also: 手 and 吋
寸 U+5BF8, 寸
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-5BF8
← 寷
 		CJK Unified Ideographs 对 →
⼨ U+2F28, ⼨
KANGXI RADICAL INCH
← ⼧
 		Kangxi Radicals ⼩ →

Translingual

Stroke order

Han character

寸 (Kangxi radical 41, 寸+0, 3 strokes, cangjie input 木戈 (DI), four-corner 40300, composition ⿹𬺰丶)

  1. Kangxi radical #41, ⼨.

Derived characters

Descendants

References

  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 293, character 32
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 7411
  • Dae Jaweon: page 581, character 4
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 503, character 8
  • Unihan data for U+5BF8

Chinese

simp. and trad.
 寸

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 寸
Western Zhou Warring States Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Bronze inscriptions Qin slip script Small seal script Transcribed ancient scripts
Characters in the same phonetic series (寸) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
Old Chinese
村 *sʰuːn
忖 *sʰuːnʔ
刌 *sʰuːnʔ
寸 *sʰuːns

Shuowen considered it Ideogram (指事) – a position on the forearm where the pulse can be palpated by compressing the radial artery. It is called 寸口 in modern Chinese, and the meaning of a unit of measurement is derived from the distance between the wrist and this position. Compare 又, 手, 九, 爪.

However, it may be an abbreviated form of 尊 (zūn), borrowed to mean a unit of measurement (see: 李轶.先秦度量单位"尺""寸"用字考.云南师范大学学报(哲学社会科学版), 2010, 42(5).DOI:10.3969/j.issn.1000-5110.2010.05.017.)

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Note:
  • chhùn - literary;
  • chhǹg - vernacular.
Rime
Character 寸
Reading # 1/1
Initial (聲) 清 (14)
Final (韻) 魂 (55)
Tone (調) Departing (H)
Openness (開合) Closed
Division (等) I
Fanqie 倉困切
Baxter tshwonH
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang 		/t͡sʰuənH/
Pan
Wuyun 		/t͡sʰuonH/
Shao
Rongfen 		/t͡sʰuənH/
Edwin
Pulleyblank 		/t͡sʰwənH/
Li
Rong 		/t͡sʰuənH/
Wang
Li 		/t͡sʰuənH/
Bernard
Karlgren 		/t͡sʰuənH/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex 		cùn
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex 		cyun3
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character 寸
Reading # 1/1
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin) 		cùn
Middle
Chinese 		‹ tshwonH ›
Old
Chinese 		/*ˁu-s/
English thumb; inch

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.
Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character 寸
Reading # 1/1
No. 1913
Phonetic
component 		寸
Rime
group 		文
Rime
subdivision 		2
Corresponding
MC rime 		寸
Old
Chinese 		/*sʰuːns/

Definitions

寸

  1. (units of measure) A cun or Chinese inch, a traditional unit of length of about 3 cm.
    1. (Mainland China) Short for 市寸 (shìcùn).
    2. (Hong Kong) Legally defined as the tsun of 3.71475 cm.
  2. (informal) Short for 英寸 (yīngcùn, “inch”).
  3. (figurative) very short or little
  4. (traditional Chinese medicine) cunkou pulse; radial artery pulse at the wrist
  5. (Mandarin, colloquial) coincidental; unbelievable; opportune
  6. a surname
Coordinate terms
  • 分 (fēn, “1⁄10 cun”)
  • 尺 (chǐ, “10 cun”)

Compounds

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (寸):
  • → Japanese: 寸(すん) (sun)
  • → Korean: 촌(寸) (chon)
  • → Vietnamese: thốn (寸)

Etymology 2

For pronunciation and definitions of 寸 – see 忖 (“to ponder; to speculate; to think; etc.”).
(This character is a variant form of 忖).

Etymology 3

Pronunciation

Definitions

寸

  1. (Cantonese) Alternative form of 串

References

Japanese

Kanji

寸

(grade 6 “Kyōiku” kanji)

Readings

Compounds

Derived terms

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
寸
すん
Grade: 6
goon

From Middle Chinese 寸 (MC tshwonH).

Pronunciation

Noun

寸(すん) • (sun) 

  1. a Japanese measurement of length equivalent to 10 分 (bu) or approximately 3.03 cm
  2. (by extension) a length, measurement
  3. shortness, fewness
  4. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.
Coordinate terms
Derived terms
Derived terms
Descendants

Affix

寸(すん) • (sun) 

  1. sun (measurement of length)
  2. (by extension) length, measurement
  3. minimal, negligible
Derived terms
Derived terms

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
寸
き
Grade: 6
kun’yomi

From Old Japanese.

Suffix

寸(き) • (-ki) 

  1. (archaic) unit used in ancient times to measure lengths of horses
Derived terms

References

  1. ^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN

Korean

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 寸 (MC tshwonH).

Historical Readings
Dongguk Jeongun Reading
Dongguk Jeongun, 1448 촌〮 (Yale: chwón)
Middle Korean
Text Eumhun
Gloss (hun) Reading
Hunmong Jahoe, 1527 ᄆᆞᄃᆡ (Yale: mòtòy) 촌〯 (Yale: chwǒn)

Pronunciation

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

Hanja

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

Wikisource

寸 (eumhun 마디 촌 (madi chon))

  1. Hanja form? of 촌 (“degree of kinship”).

Compounds

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

寸

(grade 6 “Kyōiku” kanji)

Readings

Etymology

Kanji in this term
寸
しん
Grade: 6
on’yomi

Cognate with mainland Japanese 寸 (sun).

Pronunciation

Noun

寸(しん) (shin) ←すぃん (sin)?

  1. a measurement of length equivalent to 10 分 (bu) or approximately 3.03 cm

Coordinate terms

Derived terms

Derived terms

Old Japanese

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Suffix

寸 (-ki(?)) (kana き)

  1. ancient measurement of length equivalent to the modern Japanese sun or approximately 3.03 cm

Descendants

  • Japanese: 寸 (-ki)

Vietnamese

Han character

寸: Hán Việt readings: thốn
寸: Nôm readings: thốn, xốn, thổn, dón, són, thuỗn

  1. chữ Hán form of thốn (“cun, a unit of length”).

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Nguyễn (2014).
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Nguyễn et al. (2009).
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Trần (2004).
  4. ^ Trần (1999).
  5. ^ Nguyễn (1974).
  6. ^ Thiều Chửu (1942).
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