形

形 U+2F899, 形 CJK COMPATIBILITY IDEOGRAPH-2F899 ← 𦇚 CJK Compatibility Ideographs Supplement 彫 →

Stroke order

形 (Kangxi radical 59, 彡+4, 7 strokes, cangjie input 一廿竹竹竹 (MTHHH), four-corner 1242₂, composition ⿰开彡)

• 䤯 𥒱 𧨘 𫌟 𪫊 𨴸 𩃋 𡌑 𬑖 𭑾 𮏂

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 363, character 6
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 9969
• Dae Jaweon: page 681, character 25
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 2, page 852, character 10
• Unihan data for U+5F62

• Unihan data for U+2F899

Historical forms of the character 形
Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) : 幵 + 彡. In current form 幵 has been simplified to 开.

It may also be interpreted as a phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡeːŋ) : phonetic 井 (OC *skeŋʔ) + semantic 彡, if the original character was 𢒈.

形

1. form; shape; appearance

   形狀／形状  ―  xíngzhuàng  ―  form; appearance; shape

2. image; appearance
3. body; entity; contour

   形體／形体  ―  xíngtǐ  ―  physique

4. style; vogue
5. (grammar) Short for 形容詞／形容词 (xíngróngcí, “adjective”).
6. to appear; to display

   喜形於色／喜形于色  ―  xǐxíngyúsè  ―  (please add an English translation of this usage example)

7. to form; to become

   更形複雜／更形复杂  ―  gèng xíng fùzá  ―  to become more complicated

8. to compare

   相形見絀／相形见绌  ―  xiàngxíngjiànchù  ―  pale by comparison

• (form): 樣／样 (yàng), 型 (xíng)

• 莆田市荔城区档案馆 , editor (2022), “形”, in 莆仙方言文读字汇 [Puxian Dialect Literary Reading Dictionary] (overall work in Mandarin and Puxian Min), page 265.

Shinjitai	形
Kyūjitai	形󠄁 形+󠄁? (Adobe-Japan1)
The displayed kanji may be different from the image due to your environment. See here for details.

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

1. shape, form, style

• Go-on: ぎょう (gyō, Jōyō)^{←ぎやう (gyau, historical)}
• Kan-on: けい (kei, Jōyō)
• Kun: かた (kata, 形, Jōyō)、かたち (katachi, 形, Jōyō)、かたぎ (katagi)、なり (nari, 形)
• Nanori: ち (chi)

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.^[1]

Probably related to 堅い / 硬い / 固い (katai, “hard”).^[2]

• (Tokyo) かた (Odaka – )^[3][4][5]
• IPA^(key):

形(かた) • (kata) 

1. a shape
2. a form
3. a pattern, die, or model from which copies are made
4. collateral for borrowed money
5. on a coin, the side with writing on it

   Antonym: 縵面 (name)

Derived from kata above.^[1] The kata changes to gata as an instance of rendaku (連濁). Found most commonly as a suffixing element in compounds.

The standalone noun sense was originally a shortening of 女形 (onnagata, literally “woman form”), a female role played by a male actor in kabuki theater. This noun sense is only spelled with the 形 kanji.

• (Tokyo) がた (Odaka – )^[3]
• IPA^(key):

形(がた) or 形(がだ) • (gata or gada) 

1. (kabuki, theater) Short for 女形 (onnagata), a female role played by a male actor in kabuki theater

   Synonyms: 女形 (onnagata), お山 (oyama)

形(がた) • (-gata) 

1. (affixed to nouns): the shape or form of the affixed noun

   渦(うず)巻(ま)き形(がた)

   uzumakigata

   a whirlpool shape

   卵(たまご)形(がた)

   tamagogata

   an egg shape

2. (affixed to on'yomi nouns): a typical example of the affixed noun; the type of the affixed noun

   学(がく)者(しゃ)形(がた)

   gakushagata

   a scholar type

   英(えい)雄(ゆう)形(がた)

   eiyūgata

   a hero type

• For a shape, the spelling 形 is more commonly used. For a type, the spelling 型 is more commonly used.

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.^[6]

Compound of 形 (kata, “shape, form”) +‎ ち (-chi),^[4] but the derivation of the chi element is unclear.

• (Tokyo) かたち (Heiban – )^[3][4][5]
• IPA^(key):

形(かたち) • (katachi) 

1. shape or form
2. shapeliness: see 形有り (katachiari)
3. form, as opposed to substance

From Middle Chinese 形 (MC heng). Compare modern Mandarin 形 (xíng). The 漢音 (kan'on) reading, so likely a later borrowing.

• IPA^(key):

形(けい) • (-kei) 

1. (linguistics) grammatical tense

   過(か)去(こ)形(けい)

   kakokei

   the past tense

   将(しょう)来(らい)形(けい)

   shōraikei

   the future tense

2. (Japanese grammar) a conjugation form of a verb

   連(れん)用(よう)形(けい)

   ren'yōkei

   the continuative form

   命(めい)令(れい)形(けい)

   meireikei

   the imperative or command form

• 意(い)向(こう)形(けい) (ikōkei, “the volitional form”)

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.^[7]

From 成り (nari), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of the verb 成る (naru, “to become”).^[7][3]

First attested as a suffix on a noun in the 曾我物語 (Soga Mongatari),^[7] of uncertain dating but probably in the late 1300s. As a suffix on a verb stem, first attested from 1927.^[7]

• (Tokyo) なり (Odaka – )^[3]
• IPA^(key):

• The most common spelling for this use is なり, for all parts of speech.

形(なり) • (nari) 

1. the shape or form of something
2. one's clothing and appearance
3. one's body shape or form
4. one's circumstances or situation
5. one's reputation
6. (following the plain imperfective form (attributive form, 連体形 (rentaikei)) or plain perfective form of a verb) indicates the state of the affixed verb or phrase: compare English just as

   人(ひと)々(びと)の言(い)うなりになった

   hitobito no iu nari ni natta

   things turned out just as people were saying

7. (following the plain imperfective form (attributive form, 連体形 (rentaikei)) of an adjective) indicates responding to the affixed adjective: compare English fitting

   寒(さむ)ければ寒(さむ)いなりの厚(あつ)着(ぎ)をする

   samukereba samui nari no atsugi o suru

   if it's cold, then put on warm clothing / if it's cold, then put on warm clothes for cold weather

8. (following the plain imperfective form (attributive form, 連体形 (rentaikei)) of a verb) indicates the moment of the action occurring: compare English as soon as

   Synonym: や否や (ya ina ya)

   断(ことわ)りを聞(き)くなり泣(な)き出(だ)した

   kotowari o kiku nari nakidashita

   she burst into tears as soon as she heard the rejection

   幼(よう)稚(ち)園(えん)から帰(かえ)るなり、母(はは)に抱(だ)きついてきました。

   Yōchien kara kaeru nari, haha ni dakitsuite kimashita.

   As soon as she returned from kindergarten, she clung to her mom.

9. (after a verb in the past tense 〜た) ... while ...

   Synonym: 儘 (mama)

   着(き)たなり脱(ぬ)ごうとしません

   kita nari nugō to shimasen

   She doesn't want to take it off while wearing it

形(なり) • (-nari) 

1. following the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of a verb, indicates the state of the affixed verb or phrase: compare English just as

   人(ひと)々(びと)が言(い)いなりになった

   hitobito ga iinari ni natta

   things turned out just as people say

2. following a noun, indicates a state fitting or becoming to the affixed noun

   子(こ)供(ども)なりに想(そう)像(ぞう)する

   kodomo nari ni sōzō suru

   imagine in a way fitting for a child / imagine like a child (implies that the subject is a child)

   自(じ)分(ぶん)なりの判(はん)断(だん)

   jibun nari no handan

   my own kind of decision / deciding in my own way

3. following a noun, indicates that shape or form: compare English like

   弓(ゆみ)なりになる

   yumi nari ni naru

   to become bow-shaped / to become like a bow

From Middle Chinese 形 (MC heng).

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):
• Phonetic hangul:

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

形

Wikisource

形 (eumhun 모양 형 (moyang hyeong))

1. hanja form^? of 형 (“form; shape”)

• 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典.

形: Hán Nôm readings: hình, hềnh

1. image
2. a figure or a silhouette
3. (Southern Vietnam) a photo; a picture
4. (geometry) a shape
5. Clipping of hình học (“geometry”).