呂

See also: 吕

呂 U+5442, 呂 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-5442 ← 呁 [U+5441] CJK Unified Ideographs 呃 → [U+5443]

呂 U+F980, 呂 CJK COMPATIBILITY IDEOGRAPH-F980 ← 勵 [U+F97F] CJK Compatibility Ideographs 女 → [U+F981]

Translingual

Stroke order

Han character

呂 (Kangxi radical 30, 口+4, 7 strokes, cangjie input 口竹口 (RHR), four-corner 6060₀, composition ⿳口丿口)

Derived characters

• 侶, 𠴊, 𡋿, 㛎, 𢙲, 𤞪, 𨹬, 𨓐, 梠, 𣨕, 𥆻, 𥓅, 𥺓, 絽, 𠒦, 躳, 𡳎, 鋁, 𤀗, 𥖓
• 𠭤, 𥖕, 𤳧, 𡄀, 宮, 𡱶, 莒, 営, 筥, 營, 麿, 閭

Descendants

• ろ
• ロ

References

• KangXi: page 181, character 3
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 3386
• Dae Jaweon: page 398, character 8
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 577, character 12
• Unihan data for U+5442

• Unihan data for U+F980

Chinese

trad.		呂
simp.		吕*
alternative forms		膂 spine 膐 spine

Glyph origin

Pictogram (象形) of two vertebrae.

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-ra-t (“bone”) (STEDT).

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Standard)

  (Pinyin): lǚ (lü³)

  (Zhuyin): ㄌㄩˇ

  (Chengdu, SP): nü³

• Cantonese

  (Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): leoi⁵

  (Taishan, Wiktionary): lui⁴

• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): lî

  (Meixian, Guangdong): li¹

• Min Bei (KCR): lṳ̌
• Min Dong (BUC): lṳ̄
• Min Nan

  (Hokkien, POJ): lū / lǐr / lī / līr / lú / lír / lí

  (Teochew, Peng'im): le⁶

• Wu (Wugniu)
  • (Shanghainese): ⁶li; ⁶liu

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: lǚ
    • Zhuyin: ㄌㄩˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: lyǔ
    • Wade–Giles: lü³
    • Yale: lyǔ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: leu
    • Palladius: люй (ljuj)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ly²¹⁴/
  • (Chengdu)
    • Sichuanese Pinyin: nü³
    • Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: ly
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ny⁵³/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: leoi⁵
    • Yale: léuih
    • Cantonese Pinyin: loey⁵
    • Guangdong Romanization: lêu⁵
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /lɵy̯¹³/
  • (Taishanese, Taicheng)
    • Wiktionary: lui⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /lui²¹/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: lî
    • Hakka Romanization System: li´
    • Hagfa Pinyim: li¹
    • Sinological IPA: /li²⁴/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: li¹
    • Sinological IPA: /li⁴⁴/
• Min Bei
  • (Jian'ou)
    • Kienning Colloquial Romanized: lṳ̌
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ly²¹/
• Min Dong
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: lṳ̄
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /l̃y³³/
• Min Nan
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Taipei, Magong, Hsinchu, Taichung)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lū
    • Tâi-lô: lū
    • Phofsit Daibuun: lu
    • IPA (Taipei): /lu³³/
    • IPA (Xiamen): /lu²²/
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou, Lukang)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lǐr
    • Tâi-lô: lǐr
    • IPA (Lukang): /lɨ³³/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /lɯ²²/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Yilan)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lī
    • Tâi-lô: lī
    • Phofsit Daibuun: li
    • IPA (Kaohsiung, Tainan, Yilan): /li³³/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /li²²/
  • (Hokkien: Sanxia, Kinmen, Hsinchu)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: līr
    • Tâi-lô: līr
    • IPA (Kinmen): /lɯ²²/
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lú
    • Tâi-lô: lú
    • Phofsit Daibuun: luo
    • IPA (Xiamen): /lu⁵³/
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lír
    • Tâi-lô: lír
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /lɯ⁵⁵⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou, Longyan)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lí
    • Tâi-lô: lí
    • Phofsit Daibuun: lie
    • IPA (Longyan): /li²¹/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /li⁵³/

Note:

• lū/lǐr/lī/līr - vernacular;
• lú/lír/lí - literary.

• (Teochew)
  • Peng'im: le⁶
  • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: lṳ̆
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /lɯ³⁵/

Wu

• (Shanghainese)
  • Wugniu: ⁶li; ⁶liu
  • Wiktionary Romanisation: ³li; ³ly
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /li²³/, /ly²³/

Note:

• 3li - vernacular;
• 3ly - literary.

---

• Dialectal data

Variety	Location	edit 呂
Mandarin	Beijing	/ly²¹⁴/
	Harbin	/ly²¹³/
	Tianjin	/luei¹³/ /ly¹³/
	Jinan	/ly⁵⁵/
	Qingdao	/ly⁵⁵/
	Zhengzhou	/ly⁵³/
	Xi'an	/ly⁵³/
	Xining	/l̩ʷ⁵³/
	Yinchuan	/ly⁵³/
	Lanzhou	/ly⁴⁴²/
	Ürümqi	/ly⁵¹/
	Wuhan	/y⁴²/
	Chengdu	/ny⁵³/
	Guiyang	/ni⁴²/
	Kunming	/luei⁵³/
	Nanjing	/ly²¹²/
	Hefei	/zz̩ʷ²⁴/
Jin	Taiyuan	/ly⁵³/
	Pingyao	/luei⁵³/
	Hohhot	/ly⁵³/
Wu	Shanghai	/ly²³/
	Suzhou	/li³¹/
	Hangzhou	/lz̩ʷ⁵³/
	Wenzhou	/løy³⁵/
Hui	Shexian	/ly³⁵/
	Tunxi	/li³¹/
Xiang	Changsha	/lei⁴¹/
	Xiangtan	/nəi⁴²/
Gan	Nanchang	/li²¹³/
Hakka	Meixian	/li⁴⁴/
	Taoyuan	/li²⁴/
Cantonese	Guangzhou	/løy²³/
	Nanning	/ly²⁴/
	Hong Kong	/løy¹³/
Min	Xiamen (Min Nan)	/lu⁵³/ /lu²²/
	Fuzhou (Min Dong)	/ly³²/
	Jian'ou (Min Bei)	/ly²¹/
	Shantou (Min Nan)	/lɯ³⁵/
	Haikou (Min Nan)	/li³¹/

---

• Middle Chinese: ljoX

Rime
Character	呂
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	來 (37)
Final (韻)	魚 (22)
Tone (調)	Rising (X)
Openness (開合)	Open
Division (等)	III
Fanqie	力舉切
Baxter	ljoX
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/lɨʌX/
Pan Wuyun	/liɔX/
Shao Rongfen	/liɔX/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/lɨə̆X/
Li Rong	/liɔX/
Wang Li	/lĭoX/
Bernard Karlgren	/li̯woX/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	lǚ
Expected Cantonese Reflex	leoi5

• Old Chinese

  (Baxter–Sagart): /*[r]aʔ/

  (Zhengzhang): /*ɡ·raʔ/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	呂
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	lǚ
Middle Chinese	‹ ljoX ›
Old Chinese	/*[r]aʔ/
English	spine; pitch-pipe
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	呂
Reading #	1/1
No.	8579
Phonetic component	呂
Rime group	魚
Rime subdivision	0
Corresponding MC rime	吕
Old Chinese	/*ɡ·raʔ/
Notes	甲金文象鑄青銅器用的鋌塊， 中不連，非膂初文

Definitions

呂

1. ^† (anatomy) spine
2. ^† (music) even-numbered notes in shí'èrlǜ
3. Lü, a state in China that existed in the early years of the Spring and Autumn Period
4. a surname

   呂布／吕布  ―  Lǚ Bù  ―  Lü Bu (Chinese military general and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty)

Descendants

• → English: Lu, Lü, Lui, Lv, Lyu, Loo, Luy, Lou, Lew

Compounds

• 中呂／中吕
• 九鼎大呂／九鼎大吕
• 伊呂／伊吕
• 六呂／六吕
• 南呂／南吕
• 呂公枕／吕公枕
• 呂劇／吕剧 (lǚjù)
• 呂安題鳳／吕安题凤
• 呂宋／吕宋 (Lǚsòng)
• 呂寨／吕寨 (Lǚzhài)
• 呂梁／吕梁 (Lüliang)
• 呂梁山／吕梁山
• 呂氏春秋／吕氏春秋 (Lǚshìchūnqiū)
• 呂洞賓／吕洞宾 (Lǚ Dòngbīn)
• 呂相／吕相
• 呂祖／吕祖
• 呂蒙／吕蒙
• 呂蒙正／吕蒙正
• 呂覽／吕览 (Lǚlǎn)
• 大呂／大吕
• 小呂／小吕
• 律呂／律吕 (lǜlǚ)
• 律呂正義／律吕正义
• 知音諳呂／知音谙吕
• 音呂／音吕
• 黃鐘大呂／黄钟大吕

 

Japanese

Kanji

呂

(common “Jōyō” kanji)

1. spine
2. backbone

Readings

• Go-on: ろ (ro, Jōyō)
• Kan-on: りょ (ryo)
• Kun: せぼね (sebone, 呂)
• Nanori: おと (oto); とも (tomo); なが (naga)

Etymology

Kanji in this term
呂
せぼね Grade: S
kun’yomi

For pronunciation and definitions of 呂 – see the following entry.

【背骨せぼね】 [noun] [from late 1100s] backbone (series of vertebrae that encloses the spinal cord)

(This term, 呂, is an alternative spelling of the above term.)

Korean

Hanja

呂 (eum 려 (ryeo))

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

Vietnamese

Han character

呂: Hán Nôm readings: lã, lả, lỡ, lử, lữa, rả, rứa, trả, trở, lớ, lở, lữ

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