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Definition 2025

才

才

See also: 扌, オ, and 孑

Translingual

Stroke order

Han character

才 (radical 64 手+0, 3 strokes, cangjie input 木竹 (DH), four-corner 40200)

References

  • KangXi: page 416, character 30
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 11769
  • Dae Jaweon: page 763, character 1
  • Hanyu Da Zidian: volume 3, page 1824, character 2
  • Unihan data for U+624D

Chinese

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 才
Oracle bone script Bronze inscriptions Large seal script Small seal script
Characters in the same phonetic series (才) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
Old Chinese
茬 *zraː, *zraːʔ, *ʔsrɯ, *zrɯ
材 *zlɯː
才 *zlɯː, *zlɯːs
財 *zlɯː
鼒 *zlɯː, *ʔslɯ
在 *zlɯːʔ, *zlɯːs
豺 *zrɯː

Pictogram (象形) – sprouting of seeds.

Etymology 1

simp. and trad.
 才

Derivatives: 材 (OC *zlɯː, “material; timber”), 財 (OC *zlɯː, “riches; property; money”).

Pronunciation

Rime
Character 才
Reading # 1/2
Initial (聲) 從 (15)
Final (韻) 咍 (41)
Tone (調) Level (Ø)
Openness (開合) Open
Division (等) I
Fanqie 昨哉切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang		 /d͡zʌi/
Pan
Wuyun		 /d͡zəi/
Shao
Rongfen		 /d͡zɒi/
Edwin
Pulleyblank		 /d͡zəj/
Li
Rong		 /d͡zᴀi/
Wang
Li		 /d͡zɒi/
Bernard
Karlgren		 /d͡zʱɑ̆i/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex		 cái
Baxter-Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character 才
Reading # 1/1
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin)		 cái
Middle
Chinese		 ‹ dzoj ›
Old
Chinese		 /*[dz]ˤə/
English talent, ability

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 才
Reading # 1/2
No. 1061
Phonetic
component		 才
Rime
group		 之
Rime
subdivision		 0
Corresponding
MC rime		 裁
Old
Chinese		 /*zlɯː/

Definitions

才

  1. ability; gift; talent; capability
  2. talented person; talent
  3. one with a certain status or background
  4. (Min Nan) Alternative form of 材 (“classifier for volume (of wood) and area (of paper, glass, stone, curtain, etc.)”).
  5. A surname​.

Compounds

Etymology 2

trad. 才/纔
simp. 才

Pronunciation

Rime
Character 才 才
Reading # 1/2 2/2
Initial (聲) 從 (15) 從 (15)
Final (韻) 咍 (41) 咍 (41)
Tone (調) Level (Ø) Departing (H)
Openness (開合) Open Open
Division (等) I I
Fanqie 昨哉切 昨代切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang		 /d͡zʌi/ /d͡zʌiH/
Pan
Wuyun		 /d͡zəi/ /d͡zəiH/
Shao
Rongfen		 /d͡zɒi/ /d͡zɒiH/
Edwin
Pulleyblank		 /d͡zəj/ /d͡zəjH/
Li
Rong		 /d͡zᴀi/ /d͡zᴀiH/
Wang
Li		 /d͡zɒi/ /d͡zɒiH/
Bernard
Karlgren		 /d͡zʱɑ̆i/ /d͡zʱɑ̆iH/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex		 cái zài
Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character 才 才
Reading # 1/2 2/2
No. 1061 1220
Phonetic
component		 才 才
Rime
group		 之 之
Rime
subdivision		 0 0
Corresponding
MC rime		 裁 載
Old
Chinese		 /*zlɯː/ /*zlɯːs/

Definitions

才

  1. only; just; merely
    1. Used in the 才……就…… structure; only; just
  2. only a short while ago; just
  3. only after; only then; not ... until
  4. Used to emphasize that something is/is not.
    • 我才是張三。 / 我才是张三。  ―  Wǒ cái shì Zhāng Sān.  ―  I'm Zhang San (not that some else is Zhang San).
    • 我才沒有騙人。 / 我才没有骗人。  ―  Wǒ cái méiyǒu piànrén.  ―  I'm not lying.

Compounds

Etymology 3

simp. and trad.
 才
alt. forms 乍 Min Dong
則／则
即

Possibly from 正 (“just”) (Taiwan MoE).

Pronunciation

Definitions

才 (Min)

  1. only; merely
  2. just; just now
  3. only then; only after
  4. Used to emphasize that something is/is not.

Compounds

Japanese

Kanji

才

(grade 2 “Kyōiku” kanji)

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

Readings

Compounds

Noun

才 ‎(hiragana さい, romaji sai)

  1. ability, talent, aptitude
  2. simplified form of 歳
  3. alternative form of the volumetric unit 抄 (しょう) ‎(shō)

Korean

Hanja

才 • ‎(jae)
Eumhun:

  • Sound (hangeul): 재 (revised: jae, McCune-Reischauer: chae, Yale: cay)
  • Name (hangeul): 재주()
  1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

Vietnamese

Han character

才 (tài)

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

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