活

Stroke order

活 (Kangxi radical 85, 水+6, 9 strokes, cangjie input 水竹十口 (EHJR), four-corner 3216₄, composition ⿰氵舌)

• 𭉉, 𭡭, 𨨱, 𤁪(𬈾), 闊(阔), 萿, 𡎒, 𡞠, 𭝴

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 622, character 18
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 17423
• Dae Jaweon: page 1018, character 16
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 3, page 1609, character 2
• Unihan data for U+6D3B

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

The original form is 𣴠: Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *koːd, *ɡoːd) : semantic 氵 (“water”) + phonetic 𠯑 (OC *ɡroːd). Then, the right component was transformed into the variant 舌.

Schuessler (2007) proposes possible Austroasiatic etymology; compare Wa-Lawa-Bulang *gɑs "alive (of plants)" & Aslian *gɔs "to live"

活

1. to live; to exist

   • 不食則不能活。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     不食则不能活。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Han Feizi, circa 2^nd century BCE, translated based on W. K. Liao's version

     Bù shí zé bù néng huó.

     Unless he eat, he cannot live.

2. life; existence
3. to make live; to provide food for
4. having life; live
5. lively; vivid
6. flexible; movable; moving; nimble; agile
7. flexible; adaptable; fluid
8. job; work

   幹活兒／干活儿  ―  gàn huór  ―  (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   1. act of performance

      絕活兒／绝活儿  ―  juéhuór  ―  (please add an English translation of this usage example)

      這個網紅沒活兒了。 [MSC, trad.]
      这个网红没活儿了。 [MSC, simp.]

      Zhèi ge wǎnghóng méi huór le.

      (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   2. (informal) act of sexual intercourse

      器大活兒好／器大活儿好  ―  qì dà huór hǎo  ―  the "tool" (penis) is big, sex is good

   3. product; produce
9. simply; exactly
10. alive; living; in a living state

    活捉  ―  huózhuō  ―  to capture alive

    活埋  ―  huómái  ―  to bury alive

11. to save (a person's life)

    • 作百佛寺，不如活一人。 [Classical Chinese, trad. and simp.]

      From: 《佛說罵意經》 (“The Sūtra Wherein the Buddha Speaks of Thoughts about Scolding”); 2nd century CE translation by An Shigao

      Zuò bǎi fósì, bùrú huó yīrén.

      Building one hundred Buddhist temples cannot compare to saving just one human life.

12. (Mainland China Hokkien, emphasis in exclamations) so; how; what
13. (Mainland China Hokkien, in rhetorical questions) awful; unable to handle (used after either 會／会 or 𣍐／𫧃 to mean the same thing)

• (having life):

• (flexible): 靈活／灵活 (línghuó), 彈性／弹性 (tánxìng)
• (job):

• (product):

• (aweful): 得了 (deliǎo)

• (antonym(s) of “to live”): 死 (sǐ)

活

1. ^† Only used in 活活 (guōguō).

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

1. alive
2. lively
3. (of a machine or device) on; active; in operation

• Go-on: がち (gachi)^{←ぐわち (gwati, historical)}
• Kan-on: かつ (katsu, Jōyō)^{←くわつ (kwatu, historical)}
• Kun: いきる (ikiru, 活きる)、いかす (ikasu, 活かす)、いける (ikeru, 活ける)、よみがえる (yomigaeru, 活える)

From Middle Chinese 活 (MC hwat, “to live”).

• (Tokyo) かつ (Atamadaka – )^[1][2]
• IPA^(key):

活(かつ) • (katsu) ^{←くわつ (kwatu)?}

1. life

From Middle Chinese 活 (MC hwat).

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

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

活

Wikisource

活 (eumhun 살 활 (sal hwal))

1. hanja form^? of 활 (“activity”)

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

活: Hán Nôm readings: hoạt, oặt, oạc

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.