空

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See also: 🈳
空 U+7A7A, 空
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-7A7A
← 穹
 		CJK Unified Ideographs 穻 →

Translingual

Stroke order
8 strokes

Han character

空 (Kangxi radical 116, 穴+3, 8 strokes, cangjie input 十金一 (JCM), four-corner 30101, composition ⿱穴工)

Derived characters

References

  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 863, character 1
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 25415
  • Dae Jaweon: page 1289, character 8
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 4, page 2719, character 8
  • Unihan data for U+7A7A

Chinese

trad. 空
simp. # 空
alternative forms 𠀝
𫞹
𰁕
𢦉

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 空
Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)
Small seal script
Characters in the same phonetic series (工) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
Old Chinese
缸 *kroːŋ, *ɡroːŋ
篢 *kluːmʔ, *koːŋ
贑 *kluːmʔ
涳 *ŋr'oːŋ, *kʰroːŋ, *kʰoːŋ
江 *kroːŋ
肛 *kroːŋ, *qʰroːŋ
扛 *kroːŋ
杠 *kroːŋ
豇 *kroːŋ
茳 *kroːŋ
釭 *kroːŋ, *koːŋ, *kuːŋ
矼 *kroːŋ
玒 *kroːŋ, *koːŋ
虹 *kroːŋs, *koːŋs, *ɡoːŋ
腔 *kʰroːŋ
崆 *kʰroːŋ, *kʰoːŋ
羫 *kʰroːŋ
控 *kʰroːŋ, *kʰoːŋs
椌 *kʰroːŋ, *kʰoːŋ
悾 *kʰroːŋ, *kʰoːŋ, *kʰoːŋs
跫 *kʰroːŋ, *kʰoŋ, *ɡoŋ
啌 *qʰroːŋ
谾 *qʰroːŋ, *qʰoːŋ
舡 *qʰroːŋ
缻 *ɡroːŋ
項 *ɡroːŋʔ
屸 *ɡ·roːŋ
功 *koːŋ
工 *koːŋ
疘 *koːŋ
魟 *koːŋ, *qʰoːŋ, *ɡoːŋ
攻 *koːŋ, *kuːŋ
愩 *koːŋ
碽 *koːŋ
貢 *koːŋs
羾 *koːŋs
空 *kʰoːŋ, *kʰoːŋs
箜 *kʰoːŋ
硿 *kʰoːŋ
埪 *kʰoːŋ
鵼 *kʰoːŋ
倥 *kʰoːŋ, *kʰoːŋʔ, *kʰoːŋs
鞚 *kʰoːŋs
叿 *qʰoːŋ
嗊 *qʰoːŋʔ
訌 *ɡoːŋ
紅 *ɡoːŋ
仜 *ɡoːŋ
葒 *ɡoːŋ
渱 *ɡoːŋ
鴻 *ɡoːŋ, *ɡoːŋʔ
汞 *ɡoːŋʔ
澒 *ɡoːŋʔ
鞏 *koŋʔ
巩 *koŋʔ
銎 *kʰoŋ, *qʰoŋ
恐 *kʰoŋʔ, *kʰoŋs
蛩 *ɡoŋ
筇 *ɡoŋ
桏 *ɡoŋ
邛 *ɡoŋ

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kʰoːŋ, *kʰoːŋs) : semantic 穴 (“cave, hole”) + phonetic 工 (OC *koːŋ).

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *(g/k)uŋ (“hole; orifice; inner part”). 孔 (OC *kʰloːŋʔ, “hole”) is probably the endoactive derivation of 空 (OC *kʰoːŋ, “hollow; empty”) (Schuessler, 2007). Cognate with Tibetan ཁུང (khung, “hole”), Jingpho ladi hku (“nostril”), Chepang घाङ् (gʰaŋ, “hole”), Burmese ခေါင်း (hkaung:, “cavity”), Naxi ko³³ (“cave; hole; pit”) (STEDT). See also 坑 (OC *kʰraːŋ, “pit”) and 肛 (OC *kroːŋ, *qʰroːŋ, “anus”), which may or may not be related.

Pronunciation 1

Note:
  • kĕ̤ng - vernacular;
  • kŭng - literary.
Note:
  • khang - vernacular;
  • khong - literary.
Note:
  • kang1 - vernacular;
  • kong1 - literary.
  • Dialectal data
Variety Location 空
Mandarin Beijing /kʰuŋ⁵⁵/
Harbin /kʰuŋ⁴⁴/
Tianjin /kʰuŋ²¹/
Jinan /kʰuŋ²¹³/
Qingdao /kʰəŋ²¹³/
Zhengzhou /kʰuŋ²⁴/
Xi'an /kʰuŋ²¹/
Xining /kʰuə̃⁴⁴/
Yinchuan /kʰuŋ⁴⁴/
Lanzhou /kʰũn³¹/
Ürümqi /kʰuŋ⁴⁴/
Wuhan /kʰoŋ⁵⁵/
Chengdu /kʰoŋ⁵⁵/
Guiyang /kʰoŋ⁵⁵/
Kunming /kʰoŋ⁴⁴/
Nanjing /kʰoŋ³¹/
Hefei /kʰəŋ²¹/
Jin Taiyuan /kʰuəŋ¹¹/
Pingyao /kʰuŋ¹³/
Hohhot /kʰũŋ³¹/
Wu Shanghai /kʰoŋ⁵³/
Suzhou /kʰoŋ⁵⁵/
Hangzhou /kʰoŋ³³/
Wenzhou /kʰoŋ³³/
Hui Shexian /kʰuʌ̃³¹/
Tunxi /kʰan¹¹/
Xiang Changsha /kʰoŋ³³/
Xiangtan /kʰən³³/
Gan Nanchang /kʰuŋ⁴²/
Hakka Meixian /kʰuŋ⁴⁴/
Taoyuan /kʰuŋ²⁴/
Cantonese Guangzhou /hoŋ⁵³/
Nanning /huŋ⁵⁵/
Hong Kong /huŋ⁵⁵/
Min Xiamen (Hokkien) /kʰɔŋ⁵⁵/
/kʰaŋ⁵⁵/
Fuzhou (Eastern Min) /kʰøyŋ⁴⁴/
Jian'ou (Northern Min) /kʰɔŋ⁵⁴/
/kɔŋ³³/ ～闲
Shantou (Teochew) /kʰoŋ³³/
/kʰaŋ³³/
Haikou (Hainanese) /xoŋ²³/
/xaŋ²³/
Rime
Character 空
Reading # 1/2
Initial (聲) 溪 (29)
Final (韻) 東 (1)
Tone (調) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Open
Division (等) I
Fanqie 苦紅切
Baxter khuwng
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang 		/kʰuŋ/
Pan
Wuyun 		/kʰuŋ/
Shao
Rongfen 		/kʰuŋ/
Edwin
Pulleyblank 		/kʰəwŋ/
Li
Rong 		/kʰuŋ/
Wang
Li 		/kʰuŋ/
Bernhard
Karlgren 		/kʰuŋ/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex 		kōng
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex 		hung1
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character 空
Reading # 1/2
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin) 		kōng
Middle
Chinese 		‹ khuwng ›
Old
Chinese 		/*kʰˁoŋ/
English hollow, empty; hole

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 空
Reading # 1/2
No. 4034
Phonetic
component 		工
Rime
group 		東
Rime
subdivision 		0
Corresponding
MC rime 		空
Old
Chinese 		/*kʰoːŋ/

Definitions

空

  1. empty; hollow; void
    這箱子是空的。／这箱子是空的。  ―  Zhè xiāngzi shì kōng de.  ―  This box is empty.
    在盒子裡有些空瓶。 [MSC, trad.]
    在盒子里有些空瓶。 [MSC, simp.]
    Zài hézi lǐ yǒu xiē kōng píng.
    There are some empty bottles in the box.
  2. exhausted; emptied
  3. open; spacious; vast
  4. quiet and still; secluded
  5. lacking substance; fictitious; fabricated
    空話／空话  ―  kōnghuà  ―  empty talk
  6. (Eastern Min) hungry
  7. air; sky; atmosphere
    空氣／空气  ―  kōngqì  ―  air; atmosphere
    天空  ―  tiānkōng  ―  the sky
    航空  ―  hángkōng  ―  aviation
    空調／空调  ―  kōngtiáo  ―  air conditioning
  8. space; outer space; cosmos; universe
    太空  ―  tàikōng  ―  outer space
    空間／空间  ―  kōngjiān  ―  space
  9. (Buddhism) sunyata; emptiness; void of the world of the senses
  10. (Taoism) emptiness and quiet
  11. in vain; for nothing
  12. only (left, remain, etc.)
  13. to exhaust
  14. to miss the target
  15. (Southern Min, Taiwanese Hakka) hole; cavity
Synonyms
  • (empty):
Dialectal synonyms of 空 (“empty; void”)
Variety Location Words
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 空
Northeastern Mandarin Beijing 空
Taiwan 空
Jilu Mandarin Jinan 空
Central Plains Mandarin Xi'an 空
Southwestern Mandarin Chengdu 空
Wuhan 空
Jianghuai Mandarin Yangzhou 空
Hefei 空
Cantonese Guangzhou 空, 吉
Hong Kong 空, 吉
Taishan 空
Yangjiang 空
Gan Nanchang 空
Hakka Meixian 空
Jin Taiyuan 空
Northern Min Jian'ou 空
Eastern Min Fuzhou 空
Southern Min Xiamen 空
Quanzhou 空
Zhangzhou 空
Tainan 空
Chaozhou 空
Jieyang 空
Wu Suzhou 空
Wenzhou 空
Xiang Changsha 空
Shuangfeng 空
  • (hungry):
Dialectal synonyms of 餓 (“hungry”)
Variety Location Words
Classical Chinese 飢, 餓
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 餓, 飢餓
Northeastern Mandarin Beijing 餓
Taiwan 餓
Chengde 餓
Chifeng 餓
Hulunbuir (Hailar) 餓
Heihe 餓
Qiqihar 餓
Harbin 餓
Jiamusi 餓
Baicheng 餓
Changchun 餓
Tonghua 餓
Shenyang 餓
Jinzhou 餓
Singapore 餓
Jilu Mandarin Tianjin 餓
Tangshan 餓
Cangzhou 餓
Baoding 餓
Shijiazhuang 餓
Lijin 飢困
Jinan 餓
Jiaoliao Mandarin Dalian 餓
Dandong 餓
Yantai 餓, 飢困
Qingdao 餓, 飢困
Central Plains Mandarin Lingbao 飢
Jining 餓
Linfen 飢
Shangqiu 餓, 飢
Yuanyang 餓
Zhengzhou 飢
Xinyang 餓
Baihe 餓
Xi'an 飢, 餓
Baoji 飢
Tianshui 餓
Xining 餓
Xuzhou 餓
Fuyang 餓
Lanyin Mandarin Yinchuan 餓
Lanzhou 餓
Dunhuang 餓
Hami 餓
Ürümqi 餓
Southwestern Mandarin Chengdu 餓
Nanchong 餓
Dazhou 餓
Hanyuan 餓
Xichang 餓
Zigong 餓
Chongqing 餓
Wuhan 餓
Yichang 餓
Xiangyang 餓
Tianmen 餓
Guiyang 餓
Zunyi 餓
Bijie 餓
Liping 餓
Zhaotong 餓
Dali 餓
Kunming 餓
Mengzi 餓
Guilin 餓
Liuzhou 餓
Jishou 餓
Changde 餓
Hanzhong 餓
Jianghuai Mandarin Nanjing 餓
Yangzhou 餓
Lianyungang 餓
Lianshui 餓
Nantong 餓
Anqing 餓
Hefei 餓
Hong'an 餓
Cantonese Guangzhou 肚餓, 餓
Hong Kong 肚餓, 餓
Hong Kong (San Tin Weitou) 肚餓
Hong Kong (Kam Tin Weitou) 肚餓
Hong Kong (Ting Kok) 肚胈餓
Hong Kong (Tung Ping Chau) 肚胈餓
Macau 餓
Guangzhou (Panyu) 肚餓
Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu) 肚餓
Guangzhou (Conghua) 肚餓
Guangzhou (Zengcheng) 肚餓
Foshan 肚餓
Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai) 肚餓
Foshan (Shunde) 餓
Foshan (Sanshui) 肚餓
Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming) 肚餓
Zhongshan (Shiqi) 餓
Zhuhai (Qianshan, Xiangzhou) 餓
Zhuhai (Shangheng, Doumen; Tanka) 肚餓
Zhuhai (Doumen) 肚餓
Jiangmen (Baisha) 肚飢
Jiangmen (Xinhui) 肚餓
Taishan 肚飢
Kaiping (Chikan) 肚餓
Enping (Niujiang) 肚餓
Heshan (Yayao) 肚餓
Dongguan 屎肚餓
Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an) 肚餓
Shenzhen (Dapeng) 餓
Shaoguan 肚餓
Yunfu 肚餓
Yangjiang 餓
Xinyi 肚餓
Lianjiang 肚餓
Nanning 肚餓
Hepu (Lianzhou) 飢
Hepu (Shatian) 飢, 餓
Beihai 餓
Beihai (Nankang) 餓
Beihai (Yingpan) 飢
Beihai (Qiaogang - Cô Tô) 肚餓
Beihai (Qiaogang - Cát Bà) 肚餓
Fangchenggang (Fangcheng) 肚餓
Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu) 餓
Singapore (Guangfu) 餓, 肚餓
Ho Chi Minh City (Guangfu) 餓
Móng Cái 肚餓
Gan Nanchang 餓
Hakka Meixian 肚飢, 餓
Xingning 餓
Dabu (Xihe) 豺
Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua) 肚胈餓
Huidong (Daling) 餓
Dongguan (Qingxi) 肚胈餓
Shenzhen (Shatoujiao) 肚胈餓
Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui) 餓
Wuhua (Shuizhai) 肚𤸁
Wuhua (Huacheng) 肚飢, 肚胈餓
Wuhua (Changbu) 肚胈飢
Wuhua (Mianyang) 肚𤸁
Wuhua (Meilin) 𤸁
Shaoguan (Qujiang) 肚飢
Lianshan (Xiaosanjiang) 肚胈餓
Guangzhou (Lütian, Conghua) 餓
Jiexi 肚屎𤸁
Changting 腹飢, 餓
Longyan (Yongding) 肚飢
Longyan (Xiayang, Yongding) 豺
Longyan (Hukeng, Yongding) 肚飢
Wuping 肚飢
Wuping (Pingyu) 肚飢
Liancheng 腹飢
Liancheng (Peitian) 腹底飢, 腹飢, 餓
Liancheng (Juxi) 腹裡飢, 腹飢, 飢
Liancheng (Zhongbao) 腹飢
Liancheng (Laiyuan) 腹飢, 餓肚屎, 肚屎空
Ninghua 腹飢
Ruijin 肚飢, 肚籮捏飢
Shicheng 肚飢
Shangyou (Shexi) 肚飢
Miaoli (N. Sixian) 肚飢, 肚枵
Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian) 肚飢
Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu) 肚屎枵, 肚枵
Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu) 肚飢, 肚屎枵, 肚枵
Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping) 肚屎枵, 肚枵
Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an) 屎肚枵
Hong Kong 餓
Sabah (Longchuan) 肚胈餓
Kuala Lumpur (Dabu) 肚餓
Senai (Huiyang) 餓
Sungai Tapang, Batu Kawa (Hepo) 肚屎枵, 肚屎飢, 𤸁
Singkawang 肚屎飢
Bangkok (Meixian) 肚飢
Bangkok (Fengshun) 肚𤸁
Huizhou Shexian 餓
Jin Taiyuan 餓
Yangyuan 餓, 飢
Datong 飢
Xinzhou 餓
Lüliang (Lishi) 餓
Changzhi 飢
Linhe 餓
Jining 餓
Hohhot 餓
Erenhot 餓, 飢
Pingshan 餓
Zhangjiakou 餓
Handan 餓, 飢
Linzhou 飢
Suide 餓
Northern Min Jian'ou 腹飢, 餓
Eastern Min Fuzhou 空, 枵 dated
Southern Min Xiamen 枵
Xiamen (Tong'an) 腹肚枵
Quanzhou 枵
Shishi 枵
Zhangzhou 枵
Zhao'an 枵, 腹肚枵
Taipei (Wanhua) 枵
Kaohsiung 枵
Yilan 枵
Changhua (Lukang) 枵
Taichung 枵
Taichung (Wuqi) 枵
Tainan 枵
Taitung 枵
Hsinchu 枵
Penghu (Magong) 枵
Penang (Hokkien) 枵
Singapore (Hokkien) 枵, 腹肚枵
Manila (Hokkien) 枵, 腹肚枵
Chaozhou 枵, 肚困, 肚枵
Shantou 肚困, 枵
Shantou (Chenghai) 肚困, 枵
Shantou (Chaoyang) 肚困
Jieyang 枵
Haifeng 肚枵
Johor Bahru (Teochew) 枵
Singapore (Teochew) 肚困, 枵
Wenchang 肚困
Haikou 困, 肚困
Singapore (Hainanese) 困, 肚困
Zhongshan Min Zhongshan (Longdu, Shaxi) 肚餓
Zhongshan (Sanxiang) 餓, 肚餓
Wu Shanghai 餓
Suzhou 餓
Ningbo 肚飢
Wenzhou 餓
Jinhua 肚飢
Xiang Changsha 餓, 䐬
Shuangfeng 肚䐬, 餓 intensified
  • (hole):
Dialectal synonyms of 孔 (“hole”)
Variety Location Words
Classical Chinese 孔, 洞, 穴
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 孔, 洞, 孔洞, 空洞, 空穴, 窿
Northeastern Mandarin Beijing 窟窿
Singapore 洞
Jilu Mandarin Jinan 窟窿
Central Plains Mandarin Luoyang 窟窿
Wanrong 窟窿
Xi'an 窟窿子, 窟窿
Southwestern Mandarin Chengdu 窟窿, 洞洞, 洞
Wuhan 窟窿, 窟眼, 洞洞, 洞
Liuzhou 窿
Jianghuai Mandarin Nanjing 窟窿
Yangzhou 洞, 窟窿
Hefei 窟窿, 洞
Cantonese Guangzhou 窿, 咕窿
Hong Kong 窿, 咕窿
Taishan 孔
Yangjiang 窿
Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu) 窿
Singapore (Guangfu) 窿
Gan Nanchang 洞
Hakka Meixian 窿仔, 窿空仔
Miaoli (N. Sixian) 空
Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian) 空
Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu) 空
Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu) 空
Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping) 空
Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an) 空
Jin Taiyuan 窟窿, 窟子
Northern Min Jian'ou 川
Eastern Min Fuzhou 空空
Southern Min Xiamen 空, 空口
Quanzhou 空
Zhangzhou 空口
Zhangzhou (Changtai) 空
Taipei 空
Penang (Hokkien) 空
Singapore (Hokkien) 空
Manila (Hokkien) 空
Chaozhou 空
Jieyang 空, 洞
Haifeng 空
Singapore (Teochew) 空
Singapore (Hainanese) 空
Southern Pinghua Nanning (Tingzi) 窿
Wu Suzhou 洞
Wenzhou 洞, 窟, 窟窿
Jinhua 窟窿
Xiang Changsha 洞, 洞子
Shuangfeng 眼貢, 洞

Compounds

Pronunciation 2

Note: hung3 - rare.
Note:
  • káe̤ng - vernacular;
  • kóng - literary.
Note:
  • khòng - literary (including “zero”);
  • khàng - vernacular.
Note: kang3 - “zero”.
Rime
Character 空
Reading # 2/2
Initial (聲) 溪 (29)
Final (韻) 東 (1)
Tone (調) Departing (H)
Openness (開合) Open
Division (等) I
Fanqie 苦貢切
Baxter khuwngH
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang 		/kʰuŋH/
Pan
Wuyun 		/kʰuŋH/
Shao
Rongfen 		/kʰuŋH/
Edwin
Pulleyblank 		/kʰəwŋH/
Li
Rong 		/kʰuŋH/
Wang
Li 		/kʰuŋH/
Bernhard
Karlgren 		/kʰuŋH/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex 		kòng
Expected
Cantonese
Reflex 		hung3
Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character 空
Reading # 2/2
No. 4045
Phonetic
component 		工
Rime
group 		東
Rime
subdivision 		0
Corresponding
MC rime 		控
Old
Chinese 		/*kʰoːŋs/

Definitions

空

  1. to make empty; to impoverish
  2. to leave empty; to leave blank
  3. vacant; unoccupied; available
    有空房間嗎？／有空房间吗？  ―  Yǒu kòng fángjiān ma?  ―  Is there any vacant room?
    這個位子空著嗎？ [MSC, trad.]
    这个位子空着吗？ [MSC, simp.]
    Zhè ge wèizǐ kòng zhe ma?
    Is this seat available?
  4. spare time; free time; leisure
    我今天有空。  ―  Wǒ jīntiān yǒu kòng.  ―  I'm free today.
    你下午有空嗎？ [MSC, trad.]
    你下午有空吗？ [MSC, simp.]
    Nǐ xiàwǔ yǒu kòng ma?
    Are you free this afternoon?
    現在醫生沒空。 [MSC, trad.]
    现在医生没空。 [MSC, simp.]
    Xiànzài yīshēng méi kòng.
    The doctor is not available now.
  5. empty space; room
    再擠個人進來行嗎？車裡還有空嗎？ [MSC, trad.]
    再挤个人进来行吗？车里还有空吗？ [MSC, simp.]
    Zài jǐ ge rén jìnlái xíng ma? Chē lǐ hái yǒu kòng ma?
    Can you fit in another person? Is there room in the car?
  6. (of time) gap; interval; break
    Synonyms: 間隙／间隙 (jiànxì), 間隔／间隔
  7. chance; opportunity
  8. (Southern Min) zero
Synonyms
  • (zero):
Dialectal synonyms of 零 (“zero”)
Variety Location Words
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 零, 洞 as a digit
Northeastern Mandarin Beijing 零
Taiwan 零
Harbin 零
Malaysia 零
Singapore 零
Jilu Mandarin Jinan 零
Jiaoliao Mandarin Yantai (Muping) 零
Central Plains Mandarin Luoyang 零
Xi'an 零
Xining 零
Xuzhou 零
Lanyin Mandarin Yinchuan 零
Lanzhou 零
Ürümqi 零
Southwestern Mandarin Chengdu 零
Wuhan 零
Guiyang 零
Liuzhou 零
Jianghuai Mandarin Nanjing 零
Yangzhou 零
Cantonese Guangzhou 零
Hong Kong 零
Macau 零
Dongguan 零
Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu) 零
Singapore (Guangfu) 零
Gan Lichuan 零
Pingxiang 零
Hakka Meixian 零
Yudu 零
Miaoli (N. Sixian) 零
Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian) 零
Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu) 零
Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu) 零
Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping) 零
Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an) 零
Huizhou Jixi 零
Jin Taiyuan 零
Xinzhou 零
Northern Min Jian'ou 零
Eastern Min Fuzhou 零, 環
Southern Min Xiamen 空, 零
Quanzhou 空
Zhangzhou 空
Taipei 空
Kaohsiung 空
Tainan 空
Penang (Hokkien) 空
Singapore (Hokkien) 空
Manila (Hokkien) 空
Chaozhou 空
Shantou 空
Singapore (Teochew) 空
Batam (Teochew) 空
Leizhou 零
Wenchang 空, 零
Haikou 空, 零
Southern Pinghua Nanning (Tingzi) 零
Wu Shanghai 零
Shanghai (Chongming) 零
Suzhou 零
Hangzhou 零
Ningbo 零
Wenzhou 零
Jinhua 零
  • (spare time):
  • (empty): (Cantonese) 吉

Compounds

Pronunciation 3

Definitions

空

  1. † Alternative form of 孔 (kǒng, “hole; cave; mouth”)

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (空):
  • → Japanese: 空(くう) (kū)
  • → Korean: 공(空) (gong)
  • → Vietnamese: không (空)

References

Japanese

Kanji

空

(First grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

Compounds

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
空
そら
Grade: 1
kun'yomi
Alternative spelling
虚

⟨so1ra⟩ → */sʷora/ → /sora/

From Old Japanese, presumably from Proto-Japonic *sora.

Found in the Kojiki c. 712 CE.[1]

Pronunciation

Noun

空(そら) • (sora) 

  1. the sky
    Synonym: 天 (ten)
Derived terms
Derived terms

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
空
から
Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Cognate with 殻 (kara, “shell”).[1]

Pronunciation

Prefix

空(から) • (kara) 

  1. something empty
    空(から)箱(ばこ) ― karabako ― empty box
  2. ineffectual
    空(から)振(ぶ)り ― karaburi ― in vain
  3. false
    空(から)元(げん)気(き) ― karagenki ― false vigor, bravado
Derived terms
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
空
くう
Grade: 1
goon

From Middle Chinese 空 (MC khuwng|khuwngH).

The Buddhist senses are a translation of Sanskrit शून्यता (śūnyatā).

Pronunciation

Noun

空(くう) • (kū) 

  1. empty air
  2. meaninglessness
  3. (Buddhism) sunyata: emptiness, vacuity, awareness, openness, thusness
  4. (Buddhism) void: one of the 五大 (godai, literally “great five”) and the highest of the five elements
Derived terms
Derived terms

Etymology 4

Kanji in this term
空
うろ
Grade: 1
kun'yomi
For pronunciation and definitions of 空 – see the following entry: うろ

(The following entry is uncreated: うろ.)

Etymology 5

Kanji in this term
空
うつお
Grade: 1
kun'yomi
For pronunciation and definitions of 空 – see the following entry: 虚

(The following entry is uncreated: 虚.)

Etymology 6

Kanji in this term
空
うつぼ
Grade: 1
kun'yomi
For pronunciation and definitions of 空 – see the following entry: うつぼ

(The following entry is uncreated: うつぼ.)

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

Korean

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 空 (MC khuwng|khuwngH).

Hanja

Korean numbers (edit)
0 1  →  10  → 
    Native isol.: (slang) 빵 (ppang)
    Sino-Korean: 영 (yeong), 령 (ryeong), (as digit, not number) 공 (gong)
    Hanja: 零, 空
Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

Wikisource

空 (eumhun 빌 공 (bil gong))

  1. Hanja form? of 공 (“empty; void”).
  2. Hanja form? of 공 (“sky; air”).
  3. Hanja form? of 공 (“zero”).

Compounds

Compounds

References

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

Okinawan

Kanji

空

(First grade kyōiku kanji)

Readings

Etymology

Kanji in this term
空
すら
Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Borrowed from Japanese 空 (sora) (or more exactly, an earlier form of it).

As remarked by Igarashi (2022),[1] the inherited meaning of this term in Ryukyuan languages is not "sky", but "treetop".

Pronunciation

Noun

空(すら) (sura) 

  1. (literary) the sky, heavens

References

  1. ^ Igarashi, Yosuke. "Reconstruction of Ryukyuan tone classes of Middle Japanese Class 2.4 and 2.5 nouns".

Vietnamese

Han character

空: Hán Việt readings: không (枯(khô)公(công)切(thiết))[1][2][3][4][5]
空: Nôm readings: không[1][2][3][4][5][6], khung[1][2][3], khỏng[3][7][6], khong[1], cung[3], khống[4]

  1. Chữ Hán form of không (“empty; void”).
  2. Chữ Hán form of không (“air; sky”).
  3. Chữ Hán form of không (“zero; none”).

Compounds

Compounds

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Nguyễn (2014).
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Nguyễn et al. (2009).
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Trần (2004).
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Bonet (1899).
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Génibrel (1898).
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Taberd & Pigneau de Béhaine (1838).
  7. ^ Hồ (1976).
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