機

See also 机

Translingual

shinjitai	机機
simplified	机
traditional	机機

Etymology

Phono-semantic compound (形聲): semantic 木 + phonetic 幾

Han character

機 (radical 75 木+12, 16 strokes, cangjie input 木女戈戈 (DVII), four-corner 4295₃, composition ⿰木幾)

1. machine
2. moment, chance

Descendants

• き
• キ
• 机 (simplified to existing character)

References

• KangXi: page 554, character 8
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 15561
• Dae Jaweon: page 942, character 20
• Hanyu Da Zidian: volume 2, page 1298, character 4
• Unihan data for U+6A5F

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Cantonese

Hanzi

機 (simplified 机, jyutping gei1, Yale gei1)

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Japanese

Kanji

機 (grade 4 “Kyōiku” kanji)

Readings

• On: き (ki)
• Kun: はた (hata), こぶち (kobuchi), おり (ori), わかつり (wakatsuri)

Compounds

• 危機 (きき, kiki): crisis
• 飛行機 (ひこうき, hikōki): airplane, aircraft
• 計算機 (けいさんき, keisanki): calculator
• 掃除機 (そうじき, sōjiki): vacuum cleaner

Usage notes

Often used interchangeably in compounds with 器 (き, ki) to indicate “machine”, with the distinction that 機 implies a larger machine, such as an airplane, while 器 implies a smaller device, possibly hand-held. Compare 飛行機 (hikōki) (“airplane”) with shokki (“tableware”).

Alternative forms

機 has many ryakuji (handwritten abbreviations), as it is a common character with many strokes (16):

• A phono-semantic simplification from on'yomi of “ki” (katakana キ): 木 + キ (semantic plus simplified phonetic) – compare for 議 and for 魔/摩.
• Graphical simplification.
• Graphical simplification.
• Graphical simplification.

Etymology 1

From Sinitic 機.

Noun

機 (hiragana き, romaji ki)

1. a machine, a device; a contraption
2. a loom
3. an opportunity, a chance to do something; the right time or moment
4. something of great importance: the linchpin of the matter
5. resourcefulness
6. (Buddhism) the moment of being moved into action by the teachings of the Buddha: see 機根 (kikon)
7. by extension, the workings of the heart or mind in general
8. in Noh theater, the breath of the mind
9. short for 飛行機 (hikōki): an airplane, an aircraft
10. short for 機関銃 (kikanjū): a machine gun

Idioms

• 機が熟する (きがじゅくする, ki ga juku suru): the time is ripe; a golden opportunity
• 機に乗じる (きにじょうじる, ki ni jōjiru), 機に投じる (きにとうじる, ki ni tōjiru): to sieze the moment, to jump at the chance
• 機に臨み変に応ずる (きにのぞみへんにおうずる, ki ni nozomi hen ni ōzuru), 機に応ずる (きにおうずる, ki ni ōzuru): to move with the times
• 機に (機に因って法を説く, ki ni yotte hō o toku): to change the message to suit one's audience: to alter the format or presentation for better acceptance, without changing the core ideas being conveyed
• 機を逸する (きをいっする, ki o issuru), 機を失する (きをいしっする, ki o shissuru): to miss the boat, to miss out

Etymology 2

Alteration from こうべうち, itself a compound of 首 (kōbe, “head”) + 打ち (uchi, “striking, hitting”).

Noun

機 (hiragana こぶち, romaji kobuchi)

1. a trap or snare that works by beheading the bird or beast caught in it

Etymology 3

From onomatopoeic はた (hata), possibly for the sound of the shuttle running back and forth, or for the sound of a woven cloth moving in the wind, compare 旗 (hata, “a flag”).

Noun

機 (hiragana はた, romaji hata)

1. a loom
2. woven cloth

Etymology 4

Stem form (連用形) of the verb 機る (wakatsuru, “to manipulate something”), itself an alteration of 誘る (okotsuru, “to manipulate or con someone”), a compound of 痴 (oko, “a fool”) + 釣る (tsuru, “to fish, to draw out”).

1. to manipulate (as in a device)
2. to manipulate (as in a person): to deceive, to take in someone
3. to get on someone's right side; to humor someone; to make an effort to please someone

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Korean

Hanja

機 (hangeul 기, revised gi, McCune-Reischauer ki, Yale ki)

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Mandarin

Hanzi

機 (simplified 机, pinyin jī (ji1), Wade-Giles chi¹)

Compounds

• 危機 (weiji)
• 機槍
• 機會
• 司機

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Vietnamese

Han character

機 (cơ, ki)