活

Translingual

Stroke order

Han character

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

Derived characters

𭉉, 𰑺, 𭡭, 𱮏, 𨨱, 𤁪(𬈾), 闊(阔), 萿, 𡎒, 𡞠, 𭝴

References

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

Chinese

simp. and trad.		活
alternative forms		㓉𣿛𣴠𦕾𣸅㓉𣿛𣴠𦕾𣸅𣽅

Glyph origin

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

Characters in the same phonetic series (桰) (Zhengzhang, 2003)

	Old Chinese
咶	qʰroːds, qʰroːds, *ɡroːd
話	*ɡroːds
刮	*kroːd
鴰	kroːd, koːd
趏	kroːd, kʰroːd
舌	ɡroːd, ɦbljed
姡	ɡroːd, ɡoːd
頢	ɡroːd, koːd
括	*koːd
活	koːd, ɡoːd
适	koːd, kʰoːd
栝	koːd, l̥ʰeːmʔ
佸	koːd, ɡoːd
髺	*koːd
聒	*koːd
銛	koːd, slem, *l̥ʰeːmʔ
葀	*koːd
懖	*koːd
筈	koːd, kʰoːd
萿	*koːd
蛞	*kʰoːd
闊	*kʰoːd
秳	*ɡoːd

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.

Etymology 1

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

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Standard)
(Pinyin): huó (huo²)

(Zhuyin): ㄏㄨㄛˊ

(Chengdu, Sichuanese Pinyin): ho²

(Xi'an, Guanzhong Pinyin): huó

(Nanjing, Nanjing Pinyin): ho̊q

(Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): хуә (huə, I)
Cantonese
(Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): wut⁶

(Taishan, Wiktionary): vot⁵
Gan (Wiktionary): uot⁷
Hakka
(Sixian, PFS): fa̍t

(Meixian, Guangdong): fad⁶
Jin (Wiktionary): huah⁵
Northern Min (KCR): huă
Eastern Min (BUC): uăk
Southern Min
(Hokkien, POJ): oa̍h / hoa̍t

(Teochew, Peng'im): uah⁸
Wu (Northern, Wugniu): ⁸weq / ⁸woq
Xiang (Changsha, Wiktionary): ho⁶

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: huó
  - Zhuyin: ㄏㄨㄛˊ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: huó
  - Wade–Giles: huo²
  - Yale: hwó
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: hwo
  - Palladius: хо (xo)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /xu̯ɔ³⁵/
- (Standard Chinese, erhua-ed) (活兒／活儿)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: huór
  - Zhuyin: ㄏㄨㄛˊㄦ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: huór
  - Wade–Giles: huo²-ʼrh
  - Yale: hwór
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: hwol
  - Palladius: хор (xor)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /xu̯ɔɻ³⁵/
- (Chengdu)
  - Sichuanese Pinyin: ho²
  - Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: xo
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /xo²¹/
- (Xi'an)
  - Guanzhong Pinyin: huó
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /xuo²⁴/
- (Nanjing)
  - Nanjing Pinyin: ho̊q
  - Nanjing Pinyin (numbered): hoq⁵
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /xoʔ⁵/
- (Dungan)
  - Cyrillic and Wiktionary: хуә (huə, I)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /xuə²⁴/
  (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
  - Jyutping: wut⁶
  - Yale: wuht
  - Cantonese Pinyin: wut⁹
  - Guangdong Romanization: wud⁶
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /wuːt̚²/
- (Taishanese, Taicheng)
  - Wiktionary: vot⁵
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /vᵘɔt̚³²/
Gan
- (Nanchang)
  - Wiktionary: uot⁷
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /uɵt̚²/
Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: fa̍t
  - Hakka Romanization System: fad
  - Hagfa Pinyim: fad⁶
  - Sinological IPA: /fat̚⁵/
- (Meixian)
  - Guangdong: fad⁶
  - Sinological IPA: /fat̚⁵/
Jin
- (Taiyuan)⁺
  - Wiktionary: huah⁵
  - Sinological IPA (old-style): /xuaʔ⁵⁴/
Northern Min
- (Jian'ou)
  - Kienning Colloquial Romanized: huă
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /xua²⁴/
Eastern Min
- (Fuzhou)
  - Bàng-uâ-cê: uăk
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /uaʔ⁵/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Jinjiang, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: oa̍h
  - Tâi-lô: ua̍h
  - Phofsit Daibuun: oah
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /uaʔ¹²¹/
  - IPA (Xiamen, Taipei, Kaohsiung): /uaʔ⁴/
  - IPA (Quanzhou, Jinjiang): /uaʔ²⁴/
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: hoa̍t
  - Tâi-lô: hua̍t
  - Phofsit Daibuun: hoat
  - IPA (Xiamen, Taipei, Kaohsiung): /huat̚⁴/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /huat̚¹²¹/
  - IPA (Quanzhou): /huat̚²⁴/

Note:

oa̍h - vernacular (“to live; lively; agile; alive; so; awful”), hoa̍t - literary.

(Teochew)
- Peng'im: uah⁸
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: ua̍h
- Sinological IPA ^(key): /uaʔ⁴/

Wu
- (Northern: Shanghai, Suzhou)
  - Wugniu: ⁸weq
  - MiniDict: weh^入
  - Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ⁵hhueq
  - Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /ɦuəʔ¹²/
  - Sinological IPA (Suzhou): /ɦuəʔ²³/
- (Northern: Hangzhou)
  - Wugniu: ⁸woq
  - MiniDict: woh^入
  - Sinological IPA (Hangzhou): /ɦuoʔ²³/
Xiang
- (Changsha)
  - Wiktionary: ho⁶
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /xo²⁴/

Dialectal data

Variety	Location	edit 活
Mandarin	Beijing	/xuo³⁵/
	Harbin	/xuo²⁴/
	Tianjin	/xuo⁴⁵/
	Jinan	/xuə⁴²/
	Qingdao	/xuə⁴²/
	Zhengzhou	/xuo⁴²/
	Xi'an	/xuo²⁴/
	Xining	/xu⁴⁴/
	Yinchuan	/xuə⁵³/ 幹～ /xuə¹³/ 死～
	Lanzhou	/xuə⁵³/
	Ürümqi	/xuɤ⁵¹/
	Wuhan	/xuo²¹³/
	Chengdu	/xo³¹/
	Guiyang	/xo²¹/
	Kunming	/xo³¹/
	Nanjing	/xoʔ⁵/
	Hefei	/xuɐʔ⁵/
Jin	Taiyuan	/xuaʔ⁵⁴/
	Pingyao	/xuʌʔ⁵³/
	Hohhot	/xuaʔ⁴³/
Wu	Shanghai	/ɦuəʔ¹/
	Suzhou	/ɦuəʔ³/
	Hangzhou	/ɦuoʔ²/
	Wenzhou	/ɦo²¹³/
Hui	Shexian	/xua²²/ /ua²²/
Hui	Tunxi	/uːə¹¹/
Xiang	Changsha	/xo²⁴/
Xiang	Xiangtan	/ho²⁴/
Gan	Nanchang	/uɵʔ²/
Hakka	Meixian	/fat̚⁵/
Hakka	Taoyuan	/fɑt̚⁵⁵/
Cantonese	Guangzhou	/wut̚²/
	Nanning	/wut̚²²/
	Hong Kong	/wut̚²/
Min	Xiamen (Hokkien)	/huat̚⁵/ /uaʔ⁵/
	Fuzhou (Eastern Min)	/uaʔ⁵/
	Jian'ou (Northern Min)	/xua²⁴/
	Shantou (Teochew)	/uaʔ⁵/
	Haikou (Hainanese)	/ua³³/

Middle Chinese: hwat

Rime
Character	活
Reading #	2/2
Initial (聲)	匣 (33)
Final (韻)	末 (64)
Tone (調)	Checked (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed
Division (等)	I
Fanqie	戸括切
Baxter	hwat
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ɦuɑt̚/
Pan Wuyun	/ɦʷɑt̚/
Shao Rongfen	/ɣuɑt̚/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ɦwat̚/
Li Rong	/ɣuɑt̚/
Wang Li	/ɣuɑt̚/
Bernhard Karlgren	/ɣuɑt̚/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	huó
Expected Cantonese Reflex	wut⁶

Old Chinese
(Baxter–Sagart): /*[ɡ]ʷˤat/

(Zhengzhang): /*ɡoːd/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	活
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	huó
Middle Chinese	‹ hwat ›
Old Chinese	/*[ɡ]ʷˁat/
English	to live
Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. [t] 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	活
Reading #	2/2
No.	7585
Phonetic component	桰
Rime group	月
Rime subdivision	3
Corresponding MC rime	活
Old Chinese	/*ɡoːd/

Definitions

活

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. [Pinyin]
  Unless he eat, he cannot live.
life; existence
to make live; to provide food for
having life; live
lively; vivid
flexible; movable; moving; nimble; agile
flexible; adaptable; fluid
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. [Pinyin]
  (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, [his] sex is good
3. product; produce
simply; exactly
alive; living; in a living state
活捉 ― huózhuō ― to capture alive

活埋 ― huómái ― to bury alive
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. [Pinyin]
  Building one hundred Buddhist temples cannot compare to saving just one human life.
(Mainland China Hokkien, emphasis in exclamations) so; how; what
(Mainland China Hokkien, in rhetorical questions) awful; unable to handle (used after either 會／会 or 𣍐／𫧃 to mean the same thing)

Synonyms

(having life):

Dialectal synonyms of 活 (“having life; live”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		有生
Northeastern Mandarin	Beijing	活
	Taiwan	活
	Singapore	活
Jilu Mandarin	Jinan	活
Central Plains Mandarin	Xi'an	活
Southwestern Mandarin	Chengdu	活
	Wuhan	活
	Guilin	活
Jianghuai Mandarin	Yangzhou	活
Jianghuai Mandarin	Hefei	活
Cantonese	Guangzhou	生
	Hong Kong	生
	Hong Kong (San Tin; Weitou)	生
	Hong Kong (Ting Kok)	生
	Hong Kong (Tung Ping Chau)	生
	Yangjiang	生
	Singapore (Guangfu)	生
Gan	Nanchang	活
Hakka	Meixian	生
	Hong Kong	生
	Senai (Huiyang)	生
Jin	Taiyuan	活
Northern Min	Jian'ou	生
Eastern Min	Fuzhou	活
Southern Min	Xiamen	活
	Singapore (Hokkien)	活
	Chaozhou	活
	Bangkok (Teochew)	活
	Johor Bahru (Teochew)	活
	Singapore (Teochew)	活
Wu	Shanghai	活
	Suzhou	活
	Wenzhou	活, 健
Xiang	Changsha	活
Xiang	Shuangfeng	活

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

edit

執事／执事 (zhíshì) (literary)
工作 (gōngzuò)
差事 (chāishi)
差使 (chāishi)
穡頭／穑头 (Taiwanese Hokkien)
職務／职务 (zhíwù)
頭路／头路 (Hakka, Hokkien)

(product):

edit

出品 (chūpǐn)
出產／出产 (chūchǎn)
產出／产出 (chǎnchū)
產品／产品 (chǎnpǐn)
產物／产物 (chǎnwù)

Dialectal synonyms of 多麼 (“how; what; so; such”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		何等, 何其, 一何, 何哉, 何等也, 何則
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		多麼, 何等, 何其
Northeastern Mandarin	Beijing	多麼, 多
	Taiwan	多麼, 多
	Malaysia	多
	Singapore	多麼, 多
Jilu Mandarin	Jinan	多麼, 多
Central Plains Mandarin	Xi'an	多
Southwestern Mandarin	Chengdu	好, 多
	Wuhan	幾, 幾樣, 好
	Guilin	好
Jianghuai Mandarin	Yangzhou	多
Jianghuai Mandarin	Hefei	好
Cantonese	Guangzhou	幾, 幾咁
	Hong Kong	幾, 幾咁
	Yangjiang	幾
Gan	Nanchang	幾
Hakka	Meixian	幾
Jin	Taiyuan	多麼, 多來
Northern Min	Jian'ou	幾多
Eastern Min	Fuzhou	若夥, 若
Southern Min	Xiamen	偌, 偌爾仔, 活, 活欲
	Quanzhou	偌, 活, 活欲
	Zhangzhou	偌, 偌爾仔, 偌仔爾, 活, 活欲
	Taipei	偌爾, 偌仔爾
	Kaohsiung	偌爾, 偌仔爾
	Penang (Hokkien)	偌
	Singapore (Hokkien)	偌
	Manila (Hokkien)	偌
	Chaozhou	若
	Singapore (Teochew)	若
Zhongshan Min	Zhongshan (Longdu, Shaxi)	幾
Wu	Shanghai	多少, 幾化
	Suzhou	幾化
	Wenzhou	幾倈, 幾恁
Xiang	Changsha	幾, 幾多, 好
Xiang	Shuangfeng	幾, 好

(aweful): 得了 (deliǎo)

Antonyms

(antonym(s) of “to live”): 死 (sǐ)

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (活):

→ Japanese: 活(かつ) (katsu)

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): guō, kuò (guo¹, kuo⁴)

(Zhuyin): ㄍㄨㄛ, ㄎㄨㄛˋ
Cantonese (Jyutping): kut³

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese, standard in Mainland)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: guō
  - Zhuyin: ㄍㄨㄛ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: guo
  - Wade–Giles: kuo¹
  - Yale: gwō
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: guo
  - Palladius: го (go)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ku̯ɔ⁵⁵/
- (Standard Chinese, standard in Taiwan)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: kuò
  - Zhuyin: ㄎㄨㄛˋ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: kuò
  - Wade–Giles: kʻuo⁴
  - Yale: kwò
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: kuoh
  - Palladius: ко (ko)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /kʰu̯ɔ⁵¹/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
  - Jyutping: kut³
  - Yale: kut
  - Cantonese Pinyin: kut⁸
  - Guangdong Romanization: kud³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /kʰuːt̚³/

Middle Chinese: kwat

Rime
Character	活
Reading #	1/2
Initial (聲)	見 (28)
Final (韻)	末 (64)
Tone (調)	Checked (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed
Division (等)	I
Fanqie	古活切
Baxter	kwat
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/kuɑt̚/
Pan Wuyun	/kʷɑt̚/
Shao Rongfen	/kuɑt̚/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/kwat̚/
Li Rong	/kuɑt̚/
Wang Li	/kuɑt̚/
Bernhard Karlgren	/kuɑt̚/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	guo
Expected Cantonese Reflex	gut³

Old Chinese
(Zhengzhang): /*koːd/

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	活
Reading #	1/2
No.	7568
Phonetic component	桰
Rime group	月
Rime subdivision	3
Corresponding MC rime	括
Old Chinese	/*koːd/

Definitions

活

^† Only used in 活活 (guōguō).

Compounds

Japanese

Kanji

活

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

alive
lively
(of a machine or device) on; active; in operation

Readings

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)

Compounds

Etymology

Kanji in this term
活
かつ Grade: 2
kan'on

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

Pronunciation

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

Noun

活(かつ) • (katsu) ^{←くわつ (kwatu)^?}

life

References

^ 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 活 (MC hwat).

Historical Readings
Dongguk Jeongun Reading
Dongguk Jeongun, 1448	ᅘᅪᇙ〮 (Yale: hhwálq)
Middle Korean
Text	Eumhun
Text	*Gloss (hun)*	Reading
Sinjeung Yuhap, 1576	사ᄅᆞᆯ (Yale: salol)	활 (Yale: hwal)

Pronunciation

(SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [ɸwa̠ɭ]
Phonetic hangul: [활]

Hanja

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

活

Wikisource

活 (eumhun 살 활 (sal hwal))

hanja form^? of 활 (“activity”) [affix]

Compounds

생활 (生活, saenghwal)
활기 (活氣, hwalgi)
활동 (活動, hwaldong)
활력 (活力, hwallyeok)
활발 (活潑, hwalbal)
활성 (活性, hwalseong)
활약 (活躍, hwaryak)
활인 (活人, hwarin)
활자 (活字, hwalja)

References

국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典. [1]

Vietnamese

Han character

活: Hán Nôm readings: hoạt, oặt, oạc

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

[DJR-1] Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

[NHK-2] 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

[1]

[2]