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Definition 2024


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Translingual

Han character

(radical 142 +13, 19 strokes, cangjie input 中戈廿土戈 (LITGI), four-corner 58153, composition)

References

  • KangXi: page 1099, character 3
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 33672
  • Dae Jaweon: page 1563, character 8
  • Hanyu Da Zidian: volume 4, page 2898, character 11
  • Unihan data for U+87FB

Chinese

trad.
simp.
alt. forms

Glyph origin

Characters in the same phonetic series () (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
Old Chinese
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl, *ŋralʔ
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl
*ŋaːl, *ŋaːlʔ
*ŋaːlʔ
*ŋaːlʔ
*ŋaːls
*ŋrals
*ŋral
*ŋral, *ŋralʔ
*ŋral, *ŋralʔ
*ŋralʔ
*ŋralʔ
*ŋralʔ
*ŋralʔ, *hŋral
*ŋrals
*hŋral
*hŋral
*hŋral

Phono-semantic compound (形聲, OC *ŋralʔ) : semantic  (insect) + phonetic  (OC *ŋrals).

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *k/p/s-rwak.

Pronunciation



Rime
Character
Reading # 1/1
Initial () (31)
Final () (13)
Tone (調) Rising (X)
Openness (開合) Open
Division () Chongniu III
Fanqie
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang
Shangfang
/ŋˠiᴇX/
Pan
Wuyun
/ŋᵚiɛX/
Shao
Rongfen
/ŋiɛX/
Edwin
Pulleyblank
/ŋjiə̆X/
Li
Rong
/ŋjeX/
Wang
Li
/ŋǐeX/
Bernard
Karlgren
/ŋie̯X/
Expected
Mandarin
Reflex
Baxter-Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character
Reading # 1/1
Modern
Beijing
(Pinyin)
Middle
Chinese
‹ ngjeX ›
Old
Chinese
/*m-qʰ(r)ajʔ/
English ant

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
Reading # 1/1
No. 13049
Phonetic
component
Rime
group
Rime
subdivision
1
Corresponding
MC rime
Old
Chinese
/*ŋralʔ/
Notes

Definitions

  1. ant
  2. foam or sediment in wine
  3. humble, inconsiderable
  4. black
  5. in an assembled manner
  6. A surname.

Synonyms

Dialectal synonyms of 螞蟻 (“ant”)
Variety Location Words
Classical Chinese 螞蟻
Formal (Written Standard Chinese) 螞蟻
Mandarin Beijing 螞蟻
Taiwan 螞蟻
Tianjin 螞蟻
Jinan 螞蟻、米蛘
Xi'an 螞蟻
Wuhan 螞蟻、螞印子、螞燕子
Chengdu 螞蟻兒、螞蟻子
Yangzhou 螞蟻
Hefei 螞蟻
Cantonese Guangzhou
Hong Kong
Taishan
Yangjiang
Gan Nanchang 螞蟻、螞寅子
Hakka Meixian 蟻公、蟻仔
Xingning 咪公
Huidong (Huizhou)
Qujiang 蟻公
Xiaosanjiang 蟻公
Changting 蟻公
Pingyu 蟻公
Wuping 蟻公
Liancheng 蟻公
Ninghua 蟻公
Yudu 螞蟻
Ruijin 蟻公子、螞蟻
Shicheng 蟻公
Shangyou 螞蟻
Miaoli (N. Sixian) 蟻公
Liudui (S. Sixian) 蟻公
Hsinchu (Hailu) 蟻公
Dongshi (Dabu) 蟻公
Zhuolan (Raoping) 蟻公
Yunlin (Zhao'an) 蟻子
Jin Taiyuan 螞蚍蜉、螞蚍蜉兒、螞蟻
Min Bei Jian'ou 蟻稚仔
Min Dong Fuzhou 紅蟻、黃蟻
Min Nan Quanzhou 狗蟻
Xiamen 狗蟻
Zhangzhou 狗蟻
Taipei 狗蟻
Kaohsiung 狗蟻
Tainan 狗蟻
Taichung 狗蟻
Yilan 狗蟻
Lukang 狗蟻
Sanxia 狗蟻
Kinmen 狗蟻
Magong 狗蟻
Hsinchu 狗蟻
Malaysia
Chaozhou
Wu Shanghai 螞蟻
Suzhou 螞蟻
Wenzhou 火蟻
Xiang Changsha 螞蟻子
Shuangfeng 螞蟻子

Compounds

  • 先驅螻蟻先驱蝼蚁
  • 兵蟻兵蚁
  • 如蟻附羶如蚁附羶
  • 工蟻工蚁
  • 排蟻陣排蚁阵
  • 浮蟻浮蚁
  • 淥蟻渌蚁
  • 熊蟻熊蚁
  • 白螞蟻白蚂蚁
  • 白蟻白蚁 (báiyǐ)
  • 群蟻潰堤群蚁溃堤
  • 群蟻附羶群蚁附羶
  • 肥蟲蟻肥虫蚁
  • 蓐蟻蓐蚁
  • 蜂屯蟻聚蜂屯蚁聚
  • 蜜蟻蜜蚁
  • 蝸居蟻垤蜗居蚁垤
  • 螞蟻蚂蚁 (mǎyǐ)
  • 螞蟻上樹蚂蚁上树 (mǎyǐ shàng shù)
  • 螞蟻窩蚂蚁窝
  • 螞蟻緣槐蚂蚁缘槐
  • 螻蟻蝼蚁
  • 螻蟻得志蝼蚁得志
  • 蟲蟲蟻蟻虫虫蚁蚁
  • 蟲蟻虫蚁
  • 蟻動蚁动
  • 蟻合蚁合
  • 蟻垤蚁垤
  • 蟻夢蚁梦
  • 蟻寇蚁寇
  • 蟻封蚁封
  • 蟻慕蚁慕
  • 蟻民蚁民
  • 蟻潰蚁溃
  • 蟻獅蚁狮
  • 蟻穴蚁穴
  • 蟻結蚁结
  • 蟻聚之兵蚁聚之兵
  • 蟻聚蜂屯蚁聚蜂屯
  • 蟻術蚁术
  • 蟻裳蚁裳
  • 蟻觀蚁观
  • 蟻酸蚁酸 (yǐsuān)
  • 蟻醛蚁醛
  • 蟻附蚁附
  • 蟻集蚁集
  • 蟻鼻錢蚁鼻钱
  • 蠶蟻蚕蚁
  • 隄潰蟻孔堤溃蚁孔
  • 飛蟻飞蚁
  • 食蟻獸食蚁兽 (shíyǐshòu)
  • 馬蟻马蚁
  • 麋沸蟻動麋沸蚁动
  • 麋沸蟻聚麋沸蚁聚

Japanese

Kanji

(uncommon “Hyōgai” kanji)

  1. ant
Readings

Alternative forms

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term

Hyōgaiji
on'yomi

From Middle Chinese (ngjeX). Compare modern Cantonese (ngai5).

Pronunciation

Affix

(hiragana , romaji gi)

  1. ant
Usage notes

This reading is only found in compounds. When the character is used on its own, it is always read as the kun'yomi of ari.

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
あり
Hyōgaiji
kun'yomi

Unknown. From Old Japanese, but ultimate derivation remains a mystery. There are potentially interesting similarities to Korean 아리 (ari, “leg”) and 아래 (arae, “below, beneath”), but evidence is lacking.

Pronunciation

Noun

(hiragana あり, romaji ari)

  1. ant
Idioms
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
ありのこ
Hyōgaiji
kun'yomi

Compound of (ari, ant) + (no, possessive particle) + (ko, child; small thing).

Pronunciation

Alternative forms

Noun

(hiragana ありのこ, romaji arinoko)

  1. (obsolete) an ant, particularly one without wings
  2. (obsolete) an ant egg or larva
Usage notes

The spelling of for ari no ko is generally only seen in old texts. In modern Japanese, this term is much more commonly spelled as 蟻の子.

References

  1. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9
  2. Yoshinori Kobayashi, Kojisho Ongi Shūsei 1: Shin'yaku Kegonkyō Ongi Shiki (in Japanese), Kyūko Shoin (published 1978; original text from 794), ISBN 4-7629-3088-1.

Kikai

Kanji

Readings

  • Native: あーにー (ānī), あに (ani), あい (ai)

Etymology

Cognate with Old Japanese (ari, ant).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /(ˀ)aːnʲiː/

Noun

(hiragana あーにー, romaji ānī)

  1. ant

Korean

Hanja

(ui) (hangeul , revised ui, McCune-Reischauer ŭi, Yale uy)

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

Northern Amami-Oshima

Kanji

(hiragana あみ, romaji ami)

Etymology

Cognate with Old Japanese (ari, ant).

Noun

(hiragana あみ, romaji ami)

  1. ant

Oki-No-Erabu

Kanji

(hiragana あに, romaji ani)

Etymology

Cognate with Old Japanese (ari, ant).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˀani/

Noun

(hiragana あに, romaji ani)

  1. ant

Okinawan

Kanji

(hiragana あい, romaji ai)

Etymology

Cognate with Old Japanese (ari, ant).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ʔai/

Noun

(hiragana あい, romaji ai)

  1. ant

Compounds

  • 蟻子 (あいこー, aikō): ant

Southern Amami-Oshima

Kanji

(hiragana あみ, romaji ami)

Etymology

Cognate with Old Japanese (ari, ant).

Noun

(hiragana あみ, romaji ami)

  1. ant

Vietnamese

Han character

(nghĩ, nghị)

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

Yonaguni

Kanji

(hiragana あや, romaji aya)

Etymology

Cognate with Old Japanese (ari, ant).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˀaja/

Noun

(hiragana あや, romaji aya)

  1. ant