船

船	U+8239, 船 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-8239

← 舸

CJK Unified Ideographs

舺 →

See also: 舩

Translingual

Stroke order

Alternative forms

The top-right part can be either 八 or 几, depending on the script; Japanese: 船, mainland China: 船, traditional Chinese: 船, Korean: 船; see Han unification.

Han character

船 (Kangxi radical 137, 舟+5, 11 strokes, cangjie input 竹卜金口 (HYCR) or 竹卜竹弓口 (HYHNR), four-corner 2846₀, composition ⿰舟㕣)

Derived characters

𪮥𥂟𬜕𬼔

References

Kangxi Dictionary: page 1010, character 17
Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 30407
Dae Jaweon: page 1468, character 15
Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 5, page 3060, character 1
Unihan data for U+8239

Chinese

trad.		船
simp. ^#		船
alternative forms		舩

Wikipedia has an article on:

船

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 船
Western Zhou	Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)
Bronze inscriptions	Small seal script

Characters in the same phonetic series (沿) (Zhengzhang, 2003)

	Old Chinese
船	*ɦljon
沿	*lon
鉛	*lon

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɦljon) : semantic 舟 (“boat”) + phonetic 㕣 (OC *lon).

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *m-lawŋ (“boat”). Compare Burmese လောင်း (laung:, “long and narrow boat”), and Mizo lawng (“boat or ship”).

Sagart (1999) interprets Old Chinese 船 (OC *ɦljon) as a nominal derivate of the verb 沿 (OC *lon, “to go downstream a river”). The Fangyan states that this word was commonly used in western China, but, by Han times, it had completely displaced the earlier 舟 (OC *tjɯw), used in central and eastern China.

Alternatively, the Proto-Sino-Tibetan root could be a loan from Proto-Mon-Khmer *d₂lu(u)ŋ ~ *d₂l(u)əŋ (“boat”), whence Mon ဂၠုၚ် (klɜ̀ŋ, “canoe, small boat”), perhaps a derivate of Proto-Mon-Khmer *luŋh ~ *luuŋh ~ *ləŋh (“to hollow, excavate, bore”), see Khmer លុង (lung, “to dig a hole”) and Vietnamese trũng (“concave”) (Sidwell, 2006; Schuessler, 2007).

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Standard)
(Pinyin): chuán (chuan²)

(Zhuyin): ㄔㄨㄢˊ

(Chengdu, Sichuanese Pinyin): cuan²

(Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): чуан (čuan, I)
Cantonese
(Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): syun⁴

(Taishan, Wiktionary): son³
Gan (Wiktionary): son³
Hakka
(Sixian, PFS): sòn

(Meixian, Guangdong): son²
Jin (Wiktionary): cuan¹
Northern Min (KCR): ṳ̌ing
Eastern Min (BUC): sùng
Southern Min
(Hokkien, POJ): chûn / soân

(Teochew, Peng'im): zung⁵
Wu (Wugniu)
- (Northern): ⁶zoe
Xiang (Changsha, Wiktionary): jye²

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: chuán
  - Zhuyin: ㄔㄨㄢˊ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: chuán
  - Wade–Giles: chʻuan²
  - Yale: chwán
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: chwan
  - Palladius: чуань (čuanʹ)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʈ͡ʂʰu̯än³⁵/
- (Chengdu)
  - Sichuanese Pinyin: cuan²
  - Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: cuan
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰuan²¹/
- (Dungan)
  - Cyrillic and Wiktionary: чуан (čuan, I)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʈ͡ʂʰuæ̃²⁴/
  (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: syun⁴
  - Yale: syùhn
  - Cantonese Pinyin: syn⁴
  - Guangdong Romanization: xun⁴
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /syːn²¹/
- (Taishanese, Taicheng)
  - Wiktionary: son³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /sᵘɔn²²/
Gan
- (Nanchang)
  - Wiktionary: son³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /sɵn²¹³/
Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: sòn
  - Hakka Romanization System: sonˇ
  - Hagfa Pinyim: son²
  - Sinological IPA: /son¹¹/
- (Meixian)
  - Guangdong: son²
  - Sinological IPA: /sɔn¹¹/
Jin
- (Taiyuan)⁺
  - Wiktionary: cuan¹
  - Sinological IPA (old-style): /t͡sʰuæ̃¹¹/
Northern Min
- (Jian'ou)
  - Kienning Colloquial Romanized: ṳ̌ing
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /yiŋ²¹/
Eastern Min
- (Fuzhou)
  - Bàng-uâ-cê: sùng
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /suŋ⁵³/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Jinjiang, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: chûn
  - Tâi-lô: tsûn
  - Phofsit Daibuun: zuun
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /t͡sun²³/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /t͡sun¹³/
  - IPA (Xiamen, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, Taipei): /t͡sun²⁴/
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Jinjiang, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: soân
  - Tâi-lô: suân
  - Phofsit Daibuun: soaan
  - IPA (Xiamen, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, Taipei): /suan²⁴/
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /suan²³/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /suan¹³/

Note:

chûn - vernacular;
soân - literary.

(Teochew)
- Peng'im: zung⁵
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: tsûng
- Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡suŋ⁵⁵/

Wu
- (Shanghai):
  - Wugniu: ⁶zoe
  - MiniDict: zoe^去
  - Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ³zoe
  - Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /zø²³/
Xiang
- (Changsha)
  - Wiktionary: jye²
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡ɕy̯e̞¹³/

Dialectal data

Variety	Location	edit 船
Mandarin	Beijing	/ʈ͡ʂʰuan³⁵/
	Harbin	/ʈ͡ʂʰuan²⁴/
	Tianjin	/ʈ͡ʂʰuan⁴⁵/ /t͡sʰuan⁴⁵/
	Jinan	/ʈ͡ʂʰuã⁴²/
	Qingdao	/t͡sʰuã⁴²/
	Zhengzhou	/ʈ͡ʂʰuan⁴²/
	Xi'an	/p͡fʰã²⁴/
	Xining	/ʈ͡ʂʰuã²⁴/
	Yinchuan	/ʈ͡ʂʰuan⁵³/
	Lanzhou	/p͡fʰɛ̃n⁵³/
	Ürümqi	/ʈ͡ʂʰuan⁵¹/
	Wuhan	/t͡sʰuan²¹³/
	Chengdu	/t͡sʰuan³¹/
	Guiyang	/t͡sʰuan²¹/
	Kunming	/ʈ͡ʂʰuã̠³¹/
	Nanjing	/ʈ͡ʂʰuaŋ²⁴/
	Hefei	/ʈ͡ʂʰʊ̃⁵⁵/
Jin	Taiyuan	/t͡sʰuæ̃¹¹/
	Pingyao	/t͡sʰuɑŋ¹³/
	Hohhot	/t͡sʰʰuæ̃³¹/
Wu	Shanghai	/zø²³/
	Suzhou	/zø¹³/
	Hangzhou	/d͡zz̩ʷõ²¹³/
	Wenzhou	/jy³¹/
Hui	Shexian	/t͡ɕʰye⁴⁴/
Hui	Tunxi	/ɕyɛ⁴⁴/
Xiang	Changsha	/t͡ɕyẽ¹³/
Xiang	Xiangtan	/d͡ʑyẽ¹²/
Gan	Nanchang	/sɵn⁴⁵/
Hakka	Meixian	/son¹¹/
Hakka	Taoyuan	/ʃon¹¹/
Cantonese	Guangzhou	/syn²¹/
	Nanning	/syn²¹/
	Hong Kong	/syn²¹/
Min	Xiamen (Hokkien)	/suan³⁵/ /t͡sun³⁵/
	Fuzhou (Eastern Min)	/suŋ⁵³/
	Jian'ou (Northern Min)	/yiŋ²¹/
	Shantou (Teochew)	/t͡suŋ⁵⁵/
	Haikou (Hainanese)	/tun³¹/

Middle Chinese: zywen

Rime
Character	船
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	船 (27)
Final (韻)	仙 (78)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed
Division (等)	III
Fanqie	食川切
Baxter	zywen
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ʑiuᴇn/
Pan Wuyun	/ʑʷiɛn/
Shao Rongfen	/ʑjuæn/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ʑwian/
Li Rong	/d͡ʑiuɛn/
Wang Li	/d͡ʑĭwɛn/
Bernard Karlgren	/d͡ʑʰi̯wɛn/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	shuán
Expected Cantonese Reflex	syun⁴

Old Chinese
(Baxter–Sagart): /*Cə.lo/

(Zhengzhang): /*ɦljon/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	船
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	chuán
Middle Chinese	‹ zywen ›
Old Chinese	/*Cə.lo/
English	boat
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	船
Reading #	1/1
No.	14278
Phonetic component	沿
Rime group	元
Rime subdivision	3
Corresponding MC rime	船
Old Chinese	/*ɦljon/

Definitions

船

watercraft; vessel (including ships, boats, sailing ships, hovercrafts; sometimes including submarines) (Classifier: 條／条 m; 艘 m; 隻／只 m c mn; 架 c)
- 來去江口守空船，繞船明月江水寒。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
  来去江口守空船，绕船明月江水寒。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
  From: 816, Bai Juyi, 琵琶行
  Láiqù jiāngkǒu shǒu kōng chuán, rào chuán míngyuè jiāngshuǐ hán.
  (please add an English translation of this usage example)
an object with a shape or function similar to watercraft
太空船 ― tàikōngchuán ― spaceship
(Hong Kong Cantonese, chiefly university slang) scholarship
攞船／𫽋船 [Hong Kong Cantonese] ― lo² syun⁴ ― to receive scholarship
(obsolete) alcohol cup
(obsolete) to carry by watercraft
(obsolete, dialectal) button
a surname: Chuan

Synonyms

(watercraft):

Dialectal synonyms of 船 (“watercraft; vessel”)

Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		舟, 船
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		船, 船隻
Mandarin	Beijing	船
	Taiwan	船
	Tianjin	船
	Chengde	船
	Tangshan	船
	Cangzhou	船
	Baoding	船
	Shijiazhuang	船
	Chifeng	船
	Hulunbuir (Hailar)	船
	Heihe	船
	Qiqihar	船
	Harbin	船
	Jiamusi	船
	Baicheng	船
	Changchun	船
	Tonghua	船
	Shenyang	船
	Dandong	船
	Jinzhou	船
	Dalian	船
	Yantai	船
	Qingdao	船
	Lijin	船
	Zhucheng	船
	Jinan	船
	Jining	船
	Shangqiu	船
	Yuanyang	船
	Zhengzhou	船
	Lingbao	船
	Xinyang	船
	Baihe	船
	Hanzhong	船
	Xi'an	船
	Baoji	船
	Yinchuan	船
	Tianshui	船
	Lanzhou	船
	Dunhuang	船
	Xining	船
	Hami	船
	Ürümqi	船
	Wuhan	船
	Yichang	船
	Xiangyang	船
	Tianmen	船
	Hong'an	船
	Chengdu	船
	Nanchong	船
	Dazhou	船
	Hanyuan	船
	Xichang	船
	Zigong	船
	Chongqing	船
	Zunyi	船
	Bijie	船
	Liping	船
	Zhaotong	船
	Dali	船
	Kunming	船
	Mengzi	船
	Guilin	船
	Liuzhou	船
Jishou	船
Changde	船
Anqing	船
Xuzhou	船
Fuyang	船
Wuhu	船
Yangzhou	船
Lianyungang	船
Lianshui	船
Nanjing	船
Hefei	船
Nantong	船
Malaysia	船
Singapore	船
Cantonese	Guangzhou	船
	Hong Kong	船
	Yangjiang	船
	Sanya (Yanglan Maihua)	船
	Singapore (Guangfu)	船
Gan	Nanchang	船
Hakka	Meixian	船
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	船仔
	Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian)	船仔
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu)	船仔
	Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu)	船
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping)	船
	Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an)	船
	Kuching (Hepo)	船
Huizhou	Shexian	船
Jin	Taiyuan	船
	Yangyuan	船
	Datong	船
	Xinzhou	船
	Lishi	船
	Linfen	船
	Changzhi	船
	Linhe	船
	Jining	船
	Hohhot	船
	Erenhot	船
	Pingshan	船
	Zhangjiakou	船
	Handan	船
	Linzhou	船
	Suide	船
Northern Min	Jian'ou	船
Eastern Min	Fuzhou	船
Southern Min	Xiamen	船
	Quanzhou	船
	Jinjiang	船
	Zhangzhou	船
	Zhao'an	船
	Taipei	船
	New Taipei (Tamsui)	船
	New Taipei (Sanxia)	船
	New Taipei (Pingxi)	船
	Kaohsiung	船
	Kaohsiung (Cijin)	船
	Kaohsiung (Hongmaogang, Siaogang)	船
	Kaohsiung (Dalinpu, Siaogang)	船
	Kaohsiung (Tianliao)	船
	Yilan (Toucheng)	船
	Tainan	船仔
	Tainan (Anping)	船
	Kinmen	船
	Penghu (Magong)	船
	Penghu (Xiyu)	船
	Penang (Hokkien)	船
	Singapore (Hokkien)	船
	Manila (Hokkien)	船
	Chaozhou	船
Wu	Shanghai	船
	Suzhou	船
	Wenzhou	船
Xiang	Changsha	船
	Xiangxiang	船
	Shuangfeng	船

(scholarship): 獎學金／奖学金 (jiǎngxuéjīn)

Compounds

上水船
下水船
三船
下船 (xiàchuán)
三體船／三体船 (sāntǐchuán, “trimaran”)
中船
乘船 (chéngchuán)
乾貨船／干货船
借水推船
借風使船／借风使船
僱船／雇船
公船
兵船 (bīngchuán)
冷藏船
划船 (huáchuán)
刺船
剝船／剥船
包船
南船北馬／南船北马
同船濟水／同船济水
吃墨船兒／吃墨船儿
哨船
商船 (shāngchuán)
噹噹船／当当船
四體船／四体船 (sìtǐchuán, “quadrimaran”)
回船轉舵／回船转舵
堂客船
大船
太空船 (tàikōngchuán)
夾板船／夹板船
子母船
宇宙飛船／宇宙飞船 (yǔzhòu fēichuán)
客船 (kèchuán)
寶船／宝船 (bǎochuán)
封船
小渡船 (Xiǎodùchuán)
工作船
巴船
帆船 (fānchuán, “sailboat”)
快蟹船
快速帆船
戰船／战船 (zhànchuán)
押船
拖船 (tuōchuán)
捕鯨船／捕鲸船
探測船／探测船
採蓮船／采莲船 (cǎiliánchuán)
搭船 (dāchuán)
搖船／摇船
摩托船
撐旱船／撑旱船
撐硬船兒／撑硬船儿
撐船／撑船 (chēngchuán)
擺渡船／摆渡船
攏船／拢船
放船
救生船 (jiùshēngchuán, “lifeboat”)
救難船／救难船
旱船
旱船舞
暈船／晕船 (yùnchuán)
標船／标船
樓船／楼船 (lóuchuán)
橫撐船兒／横撑船儿
櫓帆船／橹帆船
民船
氣墊船／气垫船 (qìdiànchuán)
水泥船
水漲船高／水涨船高 (shuǐzhǎngchuángāo)
水翼船
水長船高／水长船高
沙船
汽船 (qìchuán)
油船 (yóuchuán)
法船
泊船
泥船渡河
浮沉船塢／浮沉船坞
浪船
浮船塢／浮船坞 (fúchuánwù)
淌板船
涼篷船／凉篷船
渡船 (dùchuán, “ferry”)
渡馬船／渡马船
漁政船／渔政船
漁船／渔船 (yúchuán)
滿船／满船
瀧船／泷船
灘船／滩船
蒸汽船 (zhēngqìchuán)
燒王船／烧王船
燈船／灯船
爬船
獨木船／独木船
皮船
看風使船／看风使船
破冰船 (pòbīngchuán)
破釜沉船
碰碰船
碾船
篷船
糧船／粮船
繫船樁／系船桩
翻船 (fānchuán)
腳划船
腳船／脚船 (jiǎochuán)
航船 (hángchuán)
船主 (chuánzhǔ)
船位
船公司
船務／船务
船匠 (chuánjiàng)
船口 (Chuánkǒu)
船員／船员 (chuányuán)
船埠 (chuánbù)
船堅炮利／船坚炮利 (chuánjiānpàolì)
船塢／船坞 (chuánwù)
船夫 (chuánfū)
船孃／船娘
船家 (chuánjiā)
船尾 (chuánwěi)
船工 (chuángōng)
船帆 (chuánfān)
船幫／船帮 (chuánbāng)
船底 (chuándǐ)
船廠／船厂 (chuánchǎng)
船形帽
船戶／船户
船期
船桅 (chuánwéi)
船梢
船樓／船楼
船模試驗／船模试验
船歌
船殼／船壳
船沉鉅鹿／船沉巨鹿
船深
船田
船票 (chuánpiào)
船篷 (chuánpéng)
船籍 (chuánjí)
船纜／船缆
船老大
船腳／船脚
船臺／船台
船舶 (chuánbó)
船舷 (chuánxián)
船艙／船舱 (chuáncāng)
船艦／船舰
船蛆
船資／船资
船身 (chuánshēn)
船運／船运 (chuányùn)
船錢／船钱
船錨／船锚 (chuánmáo)
船長／船长 (chuánzhǎng, “captain”)
船閘／船闸 (chuánzhá)
船隊／船队 (chuánduì)
船隻／船只 (chuánzhī)
船頭／船头 (chuántóu, “the bow of a ship or boat”)
船驥／船骥
船體／船体 (chuántǐ)
艤船／舣船
花船
苦船
草船
茶船
蕩船／荡船
虛船／虚船
蝕船蟲／蚀船虫
螺槳船／螺桨船
行船 (xíngchuán)
襪船／袜船
見風駛船／见风驶船
觥船
貨櫃船／货柜船 (huòguìchuán)
貨船／货船 (huòchuán)
買船／买船
賊船／贼船 (zéichuán)
趁船
跑旱船 (pǎohànchuán)
跑船
跳船 (tiàochuán)
蹼輪汽船／蹼轮汽船
躉船／趸船 (dǔnchuán)
躺船
輪船／轮船 (lúnchuán)
逆風撐船／逆风撑船
造船 (zàochuán)
造船工業／造船工业
造船廠／造船厂 (zàochuánchǎng)
遊船／游船 (yóuchuán)
郵船／邮船 (yóuchuán)
醫院船／医院船
釣船／钓船
鐵殼船／铁壳船
鑿船蟲／凿船虫
開船／开船 (kāichuán)
間諜船／间谍船
雙體船／双体船 (shuāngtǐchuán, “catamaran”)
順水推船／顺水推船
順水行船／顺水行船
順風駛船／顺风驶船
飛船／飞船 (fēichuán)
馬溜子船／马溜子船
馬船／马船 (mǎchuán)
駁船／驳船 (bóchuán)
龍船／龙船 (lóngchuán, “dragon boat”)
龍船花／龙船花

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (船):

→ Japanese: 船(ぜん) (zen); 船(せん) (sen)
→ Korean: 선(船) (seon)
→ Vietnamese: thuyền (船)

Others:

→ Manchu: ᠴᡠᠸᠠᠨ (cuwan)
- → Yukjin Korean: 촨 (chwan)

Japanese

Shinjitai	船
Kyūjitai	船󠄂 船+`󠄂`^? (Adobe-Japan1)
	船󠄄 船+`󠄄`^? (Hanyo-Denshi) (Moji_Joho)
The displayed kanji may be different from the image due to your environment. See here for details.

Japanese Wikipedia has an article on:

船

Wikipedia ^ja

Kanji

船

(grade 2 “Kyōiku” kanji)

ship, vessel, large ship

Readings

Go-on: ぜん (zen)
Kan-on: せん (sen, Jōyō)
Kun: ふな (funa, 船, Jōyō ^†); ふね (fune, 船, Jōyō)
Nanori: ふな (funa); ふね (fune)

Compounds

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
船
ふね Grade: 2
kun’yomi

For pronunciation and definitions of 船 – see the following entry.

【ふね】

船, 舟: a boat:

船: a ship, vessel, larger ship

船, 舟, 槽: a box for storing:

船, 舟: a container used for storing liquids such as water and sake

船, 舟: a box used for pressing sake and soy sauce

船, 舟, 槽: a horse through

船, 舟: a coffin

This term needs a translation to English.

船, 舟: a box used to store candy

船, 舟: an 桶 (oke) used to store rice and grains

船, 舟: a container for storing bonsai trees and other objects

船, 舟: a treasure ship

This term needs a translation to English.

船, 舟, 槽: items in a box-shaped container

Alternative spellings
舟, 槽

(This term, 船, is an alternative spelling of the above term.)

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
船
ふな Grade: 2
kun’yomi

For pronunciation and definitions of 船 – see the following entry.

【ふな】	船, 舟: a boat: 船: a ship, vessel, larger ship Alternative spelling 舟

(This term, 船, is an alternative spelling (larger boat, ship) of the above term.)

Derived terms

References

^ Haga, Gōtarō (1914) 漢和大辞書 [The Great Kanji-Japanese Dictionary] (in Japanese), Fourth edition, Tōkyō: Kōbunsha, →DOI, page 1790 (paper), page 947 (digital)

Korean

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “what is its historical reading?”)