. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
you have here. The definition of the word
will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Translingual
Stroke order
Stroke order
Han character
名 (Kangxi radical 30, 口 +3, 6 strokes, cangjie input 弓戈口 (NIR ), four-corner 27600 , composition ⿱夕 口 )
Derived characters
佲 , 𠱷 , 姳 , 𭚮 , 𢙛 , 𭠬 , 洺 , 㫥 , 𣭨 , 𭩹 , 𤥁 , 眳 , 𥏍 , 𥒊 , 䊅 , 𥿨 , 𠸜 , 𮕿 , 詺 (𬣮 ), 𫏉 , 酩 , 銘 (铭 ), 𩳊 , 𭜇 , 𪗸 , 𭃞 , 𪟚 , 𬼨 , 𨚷 , 𢻇 , 𭭊 , 𠸛 , 㗮 , 𨿅 , 𬱃 , 𡖺 , 𮬶 , 𡅖 , 㚚 , 𡷂 , 茗 , 𬔽 , 𣜞 , 𡖚 , 𡒒
Further reading
Kangxi Dictionary: page 175 , character 9
Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 3297
Dae Jaweon: page 391, character 2
Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 582, character 6
Unihan data for U+540D
Chinese
Glyph origin
Old Chinese
名
*meŋ
洺
*meŋ
眳
*meŋʔ, *meːŋʔ
詺
*meŋs
銘
*meːŋ
茗
*meːŋʔ
酩
*meːŋʔ
姳
*meːŋʔ
Ideogrammic compound (會意 / 会意 ) : 夕 ( “ crescent moon ” ) + 口 ( “ mouth ” ) — to say one's own name to identify oneself in the dark.
An alternative theory has been proposed based on Shang era texts. 口 was originally used to write both 口 and 名 . 夕 standing for what later came to be written 明 , was added as a phonetic indicator to disambiguate the two meanings.
Etymology
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *r-miŋ ( “ name ” ) . Cognate with Tibetan མིང ( ming ) , Burmese အမည် ( a.many ) , and Mizo hming .
Pronunciation
Mandarin
(Standard )
(Pinyin ) : míng (ming2 )
(Zhuyin ) : ㄇㄧㄥˊ
(Chengdu , Sichuanese Pinyin ) : min2
(Xi'an , Guanzhong Pinyin ) : míng
(Nanjing , Nanjing Pinyin ) : mín
(Dungan , Cyrillic and Wiktionary ) : мин (min, I)
Cantonese
(Guangzhou –Hong Kong , Jyutping ) : ming4 / meng4 / meng4-2
(Dongguan , Jyutping++ ) : moeng4 / meang4
(Taishan , Wiktionary ) : men3 / miang3*
Gan (Wiktionary ) : miang4 / min4
Hakka
(Sixian , PFS ) : miàng
(Hailu , HRS ) : miangˇ
(Meixian , Guangdong ) : miang2
Jin (Wiktionary ) : ming1
Northern Min (KCR ) : miâng
Eastern Min (BUC ) : miàng / mìng
Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing ): mia2 / ming2
Southern Min
(Hokkien , POJ ) : miâ / bêng
(Teochew , Peng'im ) : mian5 / mêng5
(Leizhou , Leizhou Pinyin ) : mia5 / ming5
Southern Pinghua (Nanning , Jyutping++ ) : mang4
Wu (Wugniu )
Xiang (Changsha , Wiktionary ) : min2
Note :
ming4 - literary;
meng4(-2) - vernacular.
Note :
men3 - literary;
miang3* - vernacular.
Note :
miang4 - vernacular;
min4 - literary.
Note :
miàng - vernacular;
mìng - literary.
Note :
mia2 - vernacular;
ming2 - literary.
Southern Min
(Hokkien : Xiamen , Quanzhou , Zhangzhou , Jinjiang , Nan'an , Hui'an , Yongchun , Zhangpu , Changtai , General Taiwanese , Philippines , Singapore )
(Hokkien : Xiamen , Quanzhou , Zhangzhou , Jinjiang , Nan'an , Hui'an , Yongchun , Zhangpu , General Taiwanese , Philippines )
Note :
miâ - vernacular (“name; given name; reputation; classifier for place”);
bêng - literary.
Note :
mian5 - vernacular;
mêng5 - literary.
(Leizhou )
Leizhou Pinyin : mia5 / ming5
Sinological IPA : /mia²²/, /miŋ²²/
Note :
mia5 - vernacular;
ming5 - literary.
Southern Pinghua
Wu
(Northern : Shanghai )
(Northern : Jiading , Songjiang , Chongming , Suzhou , Kunshan , Changzhou , Jiaxing , Hangzhou , Shaoxing , Ningbo , Zhoushan )
(Jinhua )
Xiang
Baxter –Sagart system 1.1 (2014 )
Character
名
Reading #
1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)
míng
Middle Chinese
‹ mjieng ›
Old Chinese
/*C.meŋ/
English
name
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
名
Reading #
1/1
No.
9178
Phonetic component
名
Rime group
耕
Rime subdivision
0
Corresponding MC rime
名
Old Chinese
/*meŋ/
Definitions
名
name
書名 / 书名 ― shūmíng ― title of the book
給 它 起 個 名 兒/ 给 它 起 个 名 儿 ― gěi tā qǐ ge míng r ― give it a name
given name
Coordinate term: 姓 ( xìng )
reputation ; fame
有名 ― yǒumíng ― famous
名 利 ― míng lì ― fame and fortune
famous ; reputable
名 牌 ― míng pái ― having a good brand name; a brand name product
excuse ; form ; ostensible purpose
師出有名 / 师出有名 ― shīchūyǒumíng ― to do something for a good and proper reason
( grammar ) Short for 名詞 / 名词 (míngcí , “noun ”).
( grammar ) Short for 專有名詞 / 专有名词 (zhuānyǒu míngcí , “proper noun ”).
( archaic , mathematics , arithmetic ) sign
to be called
伊 名 什乇 ? [Eastern Min , trad. and simp. ] Ĭ miàng sié-nó̤h? / [Bàng-uâ-cê / IPA] What's his/her name?
to describe ; to give details of
莫名 其妙 ― mòmíng qímiào ― baffling
Classifier for place in a competition or position in a name list .
Classifier for people with a certain status or identity.
Synonyms
Compounds
References
“名 ”, 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–
“Entry #2127 ”, in 教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi ] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C. , 2024 .
莆田市政协文化文史和学习委员会 , editor (2021 ), “名 ”, in 莆仙方言大词典 [Comprehensive Dictionary of Puxian Dialect ] (overall work in Mandarin and Puxian Min), Xiamen University Press , →ISBN , page 382 .
莆田市荔城区档案馆 , editor (2022 ), “名 ”, in 莆仙方言文读字汇 [Puxian Dialect Literary Reading Dictionary ] (overall work in Mandarin and Puxian Min), page 159 .
Japanese
Kanji
名
(First grade kyōiku kanji )
Readings
Compounds
Compounds
名( な ) 前( まえ ) ( namae , “ name ” )
名( めい ) 媛( えん ) ( meien , “ famous woman ” )
名( めい ) 園( えん ) ( meien , “ excellent garden , well-known garden ” )
名( めい ) 演( えん ) ( meien , “ great performance (of acting, music, etc)” )
名( めい ) 家( か ) ( meika )
名( めい ) 器( き ) ( meiki )
名( めい ) 義( ぎ ) ( meigi )
名( めい ) 刺( し ) ( meishi )
名( みょう ) 字( じ ) ( myōji )
名( めい ) 手( しゅ ) ( meishu )
名( めい ) 勝( しょう ) ( meishō )
名( めい ) 称( しょう ) ( meishō )
名( めい ) 人( じん ) ( meijin )
名( めい ) 声( せい ) ( meisei )
名( みょう ) 目( もく ) ( myōmoku ) , 名( めい ) 目( もく ) ( meimoku )
名( めい ) 門( もん ) ( meimon )
名( めい ) 誉( よ ) ( meiyo )
名( な ) 古( ご ) 屋( や ) ( nagoya )
名( な ) 立( たち ) ( Natachi ) , 名( な ) 立( だち ) ( Nadachi ) , 名( めい ) 立( たつ ) ( Meitatsu )
名( な ) 宛( あて ) ( nāte )
名( めい ) 案( あん ) ( meian )
名( めい ) 花( か ) ( meika )
名( めい ) 画( が ) ( meiga )
名( めい ) 鑑( かん ) ( meikan )
名( めい ) 妓( ぎ ) ( meigi )
名( めい ) 君( くん ) ( meikun )
名( めい ) 言( げん ) ( meigen )
名( めい ) 工( こう ) ( meikō )
名( みょう ) 号( ごう ) ( myōgō )
名( めい ) 作( さく ) ( meisaku )
名( な ) 札( ふだ ) ( nafuda )
名( な ) 残( ごり ) ( nagori )
名( めい ) 詞( し ) ( meishi )
名( めい ) 辞( じ ) ( meiji )
名( めい ) 実( じつ ) ( meijitsu )
名( な ) 主( ぬし ) ( nanushi )
名( めい ) 匠( しょう ) ( meishō )
名( めい ) 状( じょう ) ( meijō )
名( めい ) 数( すう ) ( meisū )
名( みょう ) 跡( せき ) ( myōseki ) , 名( めい ) 跡( せき ) ( meiseki )
名( な ) 代( だい ) ( nadai ) , 名( みょう ) 代( だい ) ( myōdai )
名( めい ) 答( とう ) ( meitō )
名( めい ) 品( ひん ) ( meihin )
名( めい ) 物( ぶつ ) ( meibutsu )
名( めい ) 分( ぶん ) ( meibun )
名( みょう ) 聞( もん ) ( myōmon ) , 名( めい ) 聞( ぶん ) ( meibun )
名( めい ) 簿( ぼ ) ( meibo )
名( めい ) 望( ぼう ) ( meibō )
名( みょう ) 利( り ) ( myōri ) , 名( めい ) 利( り ) ( meiri )
名( めい ) 流( りゅう ) ( meiryū )
名( めい ) 論( ろん ) ( meiron )
名( めい ) 刹( さつ ) ( meisatsu )
姓( せい ) 名( めい ) ( seimei )
氏( し ) 名( めい ) ( shimei )
悪( あく ) 名( みょう ) ( akumyō ) , 悪( あく ) 名( めい ) ( akumei )
裏( うら ) 名( な ) ( urana )
仮( か ) 名( な ) ( kana )
Etymology 1
From Old Japanese , from Proto-Japonic *na (compare Okinawan 名 ( nā ) ).
Pronunciation
Noun
名( な ) • (na )
name
名( な ) を連( つら ) ねるna o tsuraneruput one's name on (a list)
名( な ) ばかりのna bakari noin name only
2013 July 20, “暗( あん ) 黒( こく ) 界( かい ) の騎( き ) 士( し ) ズール [Zure, Knight of the Dark World ]”, in ハーフデッキ 闇( やみ ) [Half-Deck: DARK ], Konami :
暗( あん ) 黒( こく ) 界( かい ) でその名( な ) を知( し ) らぬ者( もの ) はいない、誇( ほこ ) り高( たか ) き騎( き ) 士( し ) 。決( けっ ) して弱( よわ ) き者( もの ) に手( て ) を下( くだ ) す事( こと ) はない。Ankokukai de sono na o shiranu mono wa inai, hokoritakaki kishi. Kesshite yowaki mono ni te o kudasu koto wa nai. Everyone in the Dark World knows the name of this illustrious knight. He never oppresses the commoners.
reputation
名( な ) が響( ひび ) いているna ga hibiite irube famous
名( な ) が上( あ ) がるna ga agarubecome famous
名( な ) を上( あ ) げる/現( あらわ ) す/成( な ) す/売( う ) るna o ageru/arawasu/nasu/urubecome famous , make one's name
Usage note: 名を上げる differs from 名が上がる in that the subject purposefully did something to make themselves famous.
Derived terms
Etymology 2
From Middle Chinese 名 (MC mjieng , “name”).
Pronunciation
Counter
名( めい ) • (-mei )
counter word for people , persons
Noun
名( めい ) • (mei )
name
Prefix
名( めい ) • (mei- )
famous , great , noted
References
↑ 1.0 1.1 Matsumura, Akira , editor (2006 ), 大辞林 [Daijirin ] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo : Sanseidō , →ISBN
^ NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute , editor (1998 ), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary ] (in Japanese), Tokyo : NHK Publishing, Inc. , →ISBN
Korean
Etymology
From Middle Chinese 名 (MC mjieng ).
Historical Readings
Dongguk Jeongun Reading
Dongguk Jeongun , 1448
며ᇰ (Yale : myèng )
Middle Korean
Text
Eumhun
Gloss (hun )
Reading
Hunmong Jahoe , 1527
일홈〮 (Yale : ìlhwóm )
며ᇰ (Yale : myèng )
Pronunciation
Hanja
Wikisource
名 (eumhun 이름 명 ( ireum myeong ) )
hanja form? of 명 ( “ name ” )
hanja form? of 명 ( “ famous ; great ; noted ” )
Compounds
Compounds
명가 (名家 , myeongga )
명곡 (名曲 , myeonggok )
명공 (名工 , myeonggong )
명단 (名單 , myeongdan )
명목 (名目 , myeongmok )
명부 (名簿 , myeongbu )
명사 (名士 , myeongsa )
명사 (名詞 , myeongsa )
명사 (名辭 , myeongsa )
명성 (名聲 , myeongseong )
명소 (名所 , myeongso )
명승 (名勝 , myeongseung )
명언 (名言 , myeong'eon )
명예 (名譽 , myeong'ye )
명의 (名義 , myeong'ui )
명인 (名人 , myeong'in )
명자 (名字 , myeongja )
명작 (名作 , myeongjak )
명절 (名節 , myeongjeol )
명칭 (名稱 , myeongching )
명함 (名銜 , myeongham )
가명 (假名 , gamyeong )
개명 (改名 , gaemyeong )
고명 (高名 , gomyeong )
명명 (命名 , myeongmyeong )
무명 (無名 , mumyeong )
방명 (芳名 , bangmyeong )
별명 (別名 , byeolmyeong )
서명 (署名 , seomyeong )
성명 (姓名 , seongmyeong )
속명 (俗名 , songmyeong )
오명 (汚名 , omyeong )
유명 (有名 , yumyeong )
익명 (匿名 , ingmyeong )
인명 (人名 , inmyeong )
제명 (除名 , jemyeong )
지명 (地名 , jimyeong )
지명 (指名 , jimyeong )
직명 (職名 , jingmyeong )
필명 (筆名 , pilmyeong )
대명사 (代名詞 , daemyeongsa )
동명사 (動名詞 , dongmyeongsa )
References
국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전/電子字典 .
Kunigami
Kanji
名
(First grade kyōiku kanji )
Readings
Pronunciation
Noun
名( なー ) (nā )
name
Miyako
Kanji
名
(First grade kyōiku kanji )
Readings
Pronunciation
Noun
名 (hiragana なー , rōmaji nā )
name
Okinawan
Kanji
名
(First grade kyōiku kanji )
Readings
Compounds
Etymology
Pronunciation
Noun
名( なー ) (nā )
name
References
“ナー(なー) ” in Okinawan Dialect Dictionary - Ajima .
Vietnamese
Han character
名 : Hán Việt readings: danh (民 ( dân ) 瞑 ( manh ) 切 ( thiết ) )[ 1] [ 2] [ 3] [ 4] [ 5]
名 : Nôm readings: ranh [ 1] [ 2] [ 3] [ 6] , danh [ 1] [ 2] [ 4] [ 7] , rành [ 1] , quanh [ 2] , dinh [ 2] , gianh [ 2]
chữ Hán form of danh ( “ famous ; well-known ” ) .
Compounds
References
Yaeyama
Kanji
名
(First grade kyōiku kanji )
Readings
Pronunciation
Noun
名 (hiragana なー , rōmaji nā )
name
Yonaguni
Kanji
名
(First grade kyōiku kanji )
Readings
Pronunciation
Noun
名 (hiragana なー , rōmaji nā )
name
References
“なー【名】 ” in JLect - Japonic Languages and Dialects Database Dictionary , 2019.
Zhuang
Pronoun
名
Sawndip form of mwngz