返

返 (Kangxi radical 162, 辵+4, 8 strokes in traditional Chinese and Korean, 7 strokes in simplified Chinese and Japanese, cangjie input 卜竹水 (YHE), four-corner 3130₄ or 3230₄, composition ⿺辶反)

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 1254, character 14
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 38758
• Dae Jaweon: page 1737, character 7
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 6, page 3820, character 1
• Unihan data for U+8FD4

Historical forms of the character 返
Warring States		Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Bronze inscriptions	Chu slip and silk script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *panʔ) and ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) : semantic 辶 (“movement”) + phonetic 反 (OC *panʔ, *pʰan, “to return”). It originally conveyed the meaning of "to return along the path one came from" and, by extension, came to signify the idea of "to restore" or "to revert."^[1]

See 反 (OC *panʔ, *pʰan).

返

1. to return (to); to come or go back (to)

   返京  ―  fǎn Jīng  ―  to return to Beijing

   流連忘返／流连忘返  ―  liúliánwàngfǎn  ―  to linger and be reluctant to leave

2. to return; to give back

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “Derived from the Jiyun 孚袁切 reading of 返? Or is it actually 翻?”)

返 (Cantonese)

1. to return (to); to come or go back (to)

   返鄉下／返乡下 [Cantonese]  ―  faan¹ hoeng¹ haa^6-2   ―  to go back to one's hometown

   返屋企 [Cantonese]  ―  faan¹ uk¹ kei²   ―  to go home

2. to go to

   返工 [Cantonese]  ―  faan¹ gung¹   ―  to go to work

   返學／返学 [Cantonese]  ―  faan¹ hok⁶   ―  to go to school

   返教會／返教会 [Cantonese]  ―  faan¹ gaau³ wui^6-2   ―  to go to church

   返part-time [Hong Kong Cantonese]  ―  faan¹ paat^1- taam¹   ―  to work part-time

   佢今日有冇返呀？ [Cantonese, trad. and simp.]

   keoi⁵ gam¹ jat⁶ jau⁵ mou⁵ faan¹ aa³?

   Did he go to school/work today?

3. back, returning to a previous state

   擠返喺嗰度／挤返喺嗰度 [Cantonese]  ―  zai¹ faan¹ hai² go² dou⁶   ―  to put (something) back there

   換返件衫／换返件衫 [Cantonese]  ―  wun⁶ faan¹ gin⁶ saam¹   ―  to change back one's clothes

   打返佢 [Cantonese]  ―  daa² faan¹ keoi⁵   ―  to return him a hit; to hit him back

   救唔返 [Cantonese]  ―  gau³ m⁴ faan¹   ―  unable to be saved: unsalvageable, beyond hope, etc.

   諗返舊陣時／谂返旧阵时 [Cantonese]  ―  nam² faan¹ gau⁶ zan⁶ si^4-2   ―  thinking back to older times

   去返轉頭／去返转头 [Cantonese]  ―  heoi³ faan¹ zyun³ tau⁴   ―  to go back; to turn around

   搵返／揾返 [Cantonese]  ―  wan² faan¹   ―  to find (something that was lost)

   整返好 [Cantonese]  ―  zing² faan¹ hou²   ―  to repair; to fix

   病返 [Cantonese]  ―  beng⁶ faan¹   ―  to fall ill again

   好返 [Cantonese]  ―  hou² faan¹   ―  to recover (from an illness)

   開始喐返／开始喐返 [Cantonese]  ―  hoi¹ ci² juk¹ faan¹   ―  to start to move again

   寫返英文／写返英文 [Cantonese]  ―  se² faan¹ jing¹ man^4-2   ―  use English instead

   仲未覆返你 [Cantonese]  ―  zung⁶ mei⁶ fuk¹ faan¹ nei⁵   ―  still hasn't replied you

4. To be left over, to be remaining

   啲嘢都係留返聽日先做 [Cantonese, trad.]
   啲嘢都系留返听日先做 [Cantonese, simp.]

   di¹ je⁵ dou¹ hai⁶ lau⁴ faan¹ ting¹ jat⁶ sin¹ zou⁶

   Leave the things here first, I'll do them tommorow.

   剩返地理未考完 [Cantonese, trad. and simp.]

   From: 開放詞典／开放词典

   zing⁶ faan¹ dei⁶ lei⁵ mei⁶ haau² jyun⁴

   I have just the Geography test left.

5. Used after verbs for starting a new, good action.

   沖返個涼 [Cantonese, trad.]
   冲返个凉 [Cantonese, simp.]

   cung¹ faan¹ go³ loeng⁴

   to enjoy a shower

   寫返啲嘢／写返啲嘢 [Cantonese]  ―  se² faan¹ di¹ je⁵   ―  to write something

   執返劑 [Cantonese, trad.]
   执返剂 [Cantonese, simp.]

   zap¹ faan¹ zai¹

   to go and have sex

   得閒仲係鍾意飲返兩杯。 [Cantonese, trad.]
   得闲仲系钟意饮返两杯。 [Cantonese, simp.]

   From: 開放詞典／开放词典

   dak¹ haan⁴ zung⁶ hai⁶ zung¹ ji³ jam² faan¹ loeng⁵ bui¹.

   When I have time, downing two glasses is always the best.

   • 1996, “倒轉地球”, in 李敏 (lyrics), 在乎您, performed by 劉德華:

     一起叫玩番足夠　一起跳否則生鏽 [Literary Cantonese, trad.]
     一起叫玩番足够　一起跳否则生锈 [Literary Cantonese, simp.]

     jat¹ hei² giu³ waan² faan¹ zuk¹ gau³, jat¹ hei² tiu³ fau² zak¹ saang¹ sau³

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

• (to return):

返

1. (Southern Min) Alternative form of 轉／转 (tńg, “to go back; to return”)

Shinjitai	返
Kyūjitai [1]	返󠄁 返+󠄁? (Adobe-Japan1)
	返󠄄 返+󠄄? (Hanyo-Denshi) (Moji_Joho)
The displayed kanji may be different from the image due to your environment. See here for details.

(Third grade kyōiku kanji)

1. to come back, to return, to go back to

• Go-on: ほん (hon)
• Kan-on: はん (han)
• Kan’yō-on: へん (hen, Jōyō)
• Kun: かえす (kaesu, 返す, Jōyō)^{←かへす (kafesu, 返す, historical)}、かえる (kaeru, 返る, Jōyō)^{←かへる (kaferu, 返る, historical)}

• 返(かえ)る (kaeru)
• 返(かえ)す (kaesu)

返 (eumhun 돌이킬 반 (dorikil ban))

1. hanja form^? of 반 (“return, revert to, restore”)

返: Hán Nôm readings: phản

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