支吾

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Chinese

(a measure word); to support; to sustain
(a measure word); to support; to sustain; to erect; to raise; branch; division; to draw money
 
I; my
trad. (支吾)
simp. #(支吾)
alternative forms 枝梧

Etymology

The semantic development was “to support > to resist; to defy > to cope with; to deal with > to (fail to) resist > to stall off; to boggle > to falter; to equivocate”. All other senses are basically obsolete in the modern language.

Pronunciation



Rime
Character
Reading # 1/1 1/2
Initial () (23) (31)
Final () (11) (23)
Tone (調) Level (Ø) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Open Open
Division () III I
Fanqie
Baxter tsye ngu
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang
/t͡ɕiᴇ/ /ŋuo/
Pan
Wuyun
/t͡ɕiɛ/ /ŋuo/
Shao
Rongfen
/t͡ɕjɛ/ /ŋo/
Edwin
Pulleyblank
/ciə̆/ /ŋɔ/
Li
Rong
/t͡ɕie/ /ŋo/
Wang
Li
/t͡ɕǐe/ /ŋu/
Bernhard
Karlgren
/t͡ɕie̯/ /ŋuo/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex
zhī
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex
zi1 ng4

Verb

支吾

  1. to falter; to prevaricate; to equivocate
  2. (archaic) to deal with a person just for the occasion
  3. (archaic) to prop up; to support
  4. (archaic) to resist; to defy; to oppose
  5. (archaic) to handle
  6. (archaic) to divert oneself from loneliness
  7. (archaic) to hesitate

Derived terms

Adjective

支吾

  1. (archaic) in a predicament