很

很 U+5F88, 很 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-5F88 ← 徇 [U+5F87] CJK Unified Ideographs 徉 → [U+5F89]

Translingual

Stroke order

Stroke order

Han character

很 (radical 60, 彳+6, 9 strokes, cangjie input 竹人日女 (HOAV), four-corner 2723₂, composition ⿰彳艮)

References

• KangXi: page 366, character 13
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 10093
• Dae Jaweon: page 687, character 7
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 2, page 822, character 1
• Unihan data for U+5F88

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Chinese

simp. and trad.		很

Glyph origin

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

	Old Chinese
艱	*krɯːn
齦	*kʰrɯːnʔ, *kʰɯːnʔ, *ŋɯn
眼	*ŋrɯːnʔ
蛝	*ɡrɯːn
限	*ɡrɯːnʔ
硍	*ɡrɯːnʔ
豤	*kʰɯːnʔ, *kʰɯːnʔ, *kʰuːn
詪	*ɡlɯːnʔ, *kɯːnʔ, *kɯːns
根	*kɯːn
跟	*kɯːn
珢	*kɯːn, *kɯːns, *ŋrɯn
艮	*kɯːns
茛	*kɯːns
墾	*kʰɯːnʔ
懇	*kʰɯːnʔ
垠	*ŋɯːn, *ŋrɯn, *ŋɯn
泿	*ŋɯːn, *ŋrɯn
痕	*ɡɯːn
拫	*ɡɯːn
鞎	*ɡɯːn
很	*ɡɯːnʔ
恨	*ɡɯːns
銀	*ŋrɯn
檭	*ŋrɯn

Phono-semantic compound (形聲, OC *ɡɯːnʔ): semantic 彳 + phonetic 艮 (OC *kɯːns).

Etymology

“Cruel (~ 狠); to disobey; to defy” > “very; quite” (since Yuan dynasty). Compare 蠻／蛮 (mán).

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Standard)

  (Pinyin): hěn (hen³)

  (Zhuyin): ㄏㄣˇ

  (Dungan, Cyrillic): хын (hɨn, II)

• Cantonese (Jyutping): han²
• Gan (Wiktionary): hen³
• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): hàn
• Jin (Wiktionary): heng²
• Min Bei (KCR): hǎing
• Min Nan (POJ): hún / hín
• Wu (Wiktionary): hen (T2)
• Xiang (Wiktionary): he³ / hen³

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Pinyin: hěn
    • Zhuyin: ㄏㄣˇ
    • Wade–Giles: hên3
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: heen
    • Tongyong Pinyin: hěn
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /xən²¹⁴/
  • (Dungan)
    • Cyrillic: хын (hɨn, II)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /xəŋ⁵¹/

    (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)

• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou)⁺
    • Jyutping: han²
    • Yale: hán
    • Cantonese Pinyin: han²
    • Guangdong Romanization: hen²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /hɐn³⁵/
• Gan
  • (Nanchang)
    • Wiktionary: hen³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /hɛn²¹³/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: hàn
    • Hakka Romanization System: hanˇ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: han²
    • Sinological IPA: /han¹¹/
• Jin
  • (Taiyuan)⁺
    • Wiktionary: heng²
    • Sinological IPA (old-style): /xə̃ŋ⁵³/
• Min Bei
  • (Jian'ou)
    • Kienning Colloquial Romanized: hǎing
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /xaiŋ²¹/
• Min Nan
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou, General Taiwanese, Xiamen)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: hún
    • Tâi-lô: hún
    • Phofsit Daibuun: huon
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /hun⁵⁵⁴/
    • IPA (Taipei, Xiamen): /hun⁵³/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /hun⁴¹/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: hín
    • Tâi-lô: hín
    • Phofsit Daibuun: hien
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /hin⁵³/
• Wu
  • (Shanghainese)
    • Wiktionary: hen (T2)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /həɲ³⁴/
• Xiang
  • (Changsha)
    • Wiktionary: he³ / hen³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /xɤ̞⁴¹/, /xən⁴¹/

Note: he3 - vernacular.

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• Middle Chinese: /ɦən^X/

Rime
Character	很
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	匣 (33)
Final (韻)	痕 (53)
Tone (調)	Rising (X)
Openness (開合)	Open
Division (等)	I
Fanqie	胡墾切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ɦənX/
Pan Wuyun	/ɦənX/
Shao Rongfen	/ɣənX/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ɦənX/
Li Rong	/ɣənX/
Wang Li	/ɣənX/
Bernard Karlgren	/ɣənX/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	hèn

• Old Chinese

  (Zhengzhang): /*ɡɯːnʔ/

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	很
Reading #	1/1
No.	3937
Phonetic component	艮
Rime group	文
Rime subdivision	1
Corresponding MC rime	很
Old Chinese	/*ɡɯːnʔ/

Definitions

很

1. ^† to disobey; to defy
2. to try to one's utmost
3. ^† Alternative form of 狠 (hěn, “cruel; savage; inhumane”).
4. ^† struggle; dispute
5. very; rather; quite

   他很高興。 / 他很高兴。  ―  Tā hěn gāoxìng.  ―  He is very pleased.

   我很喜歡。 / 我很喜欢。  ―  Wǒ hěn xǐhuān.  ―  I like it very much.

   我喜歡得很。 / 我喜欢得很。  ―  Wǒ xǐhuān de hěn.  ―  I like it very much.

6. (especially before monosyllabic adjectives) (no meaning, see usage note)

   我很好。  ―  Wǒ hěn hǎo.  ―  I'm good. (no intensification)

Usage notes

• Mandarin speakers have a strong tendency to avoid monosyllabic terms. In order to satisfy this restriction, 很 is added before monosyllabic adjectives without any actual meaning. Similarly, Chinese people with monosyllabic first names will usually be addressed by their full name, even by their parents.
• Such usage of 很 is not uncommon before other adjectives as well, to the point where forming a sentence without 很 may be perceived as very unnatural. Additionally, using an adjective as a predicate without 很 might carry notions of a comparative statement, e.g. '我好' could be interpreted as 'I am good [unlike some other person that was mentioned]'.

Synonyms

• (very):

edit

• 十分 (shífēn)
• 壞／坏 (huài)
• 極其／极其 (jíqí)

• 極度／极度 (jídù)
• 極為／极为 (jíwéi)
• 極端／极端 (jíduān)

• 滾／滚 (gǔn) (literary, or in compounds)
• 異常／异常 (yìcháng)
• 非常 (fēicháng)

Dialectal synonyms of 很 (“very; quite”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		甚
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		非常, 很, 十分, 太
Mandarin	Beijing	挺, 很, 倍兒
	Taiwan	很, 挺, 好
	Tianjin	挺, 很, 傻, 老
	Jinan	挺, 楞
	Xi'an	很
	Wuhan	蠻, 很
	Chengdu	很, 好
	Yangzhou	蠻, 稀, 很
	Hefei	很
	Malaysia	很
	Singapore	很
Cantonese	Guangzhou	好
	Hong Kong	好
	Zhongshan (Shiqi)	好
	Taishan	好
	Yangjiang	好
	Kuala Lumpur	好
	Singapore	好
Gan	Nanchang	蠻
Hakka	Meixian	好
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	當, 已, 還
	Liudui (S. Sixian)	蓋, 盡, 還
	Hsinchu (Hailu)	當, 已, 還
	Dongshi (Dabu)	當, 已, 還
	Hsinchu (Raoping)	當, 已, 還
	Yunlin (Zhao'an)	足, 真, 實在
	Sabah	好
Jin	Taiyuan	很, 挺
Min Bei	Jian'ou	真
Min Dong	Fuzhou	野, 真
Min Nan	Xiamen	真, 野, 誠, 有夠, 萬代
	Quanzhou	真, 野, 誠, 有夠, 萬代
	Zhangzhou	盡, 蓋, 足, 足範, 有夠, 出奇, 極死, 見死
	Taipei	真, 誠
	Kaohsiung	有夠, 足, 真, 誠, 蓋
	Tainan	有夠, 足, 真, 誠, 蓋
	Taichung	誠, 蓋, 足
	Hsinchu	真, 誠
	Lukang	真, 誠
	Sanxia	真, 誠
	Yilan	有夠, 足, 誠, 盡
	Kinmen	足, 誠
	Magong	真, 誠
	Penang (Hokkien)	真, 誠, 真正
	Singapore (Hokkien)	真, 死爸
	Philippines (Manila Hokkien)	野, 真, 萬代
	Chaozhou	過, 好
	Shantou	好
	Jieyang	好
	Thailand (Bangkok Teochew)	好
	Johor Bahru (Teochew)	好
	Singapore (Teochew)	真
	Wenchang	真
Wu	Shanghai	蠻, 老
	Suzhou	蠻
	Wenzhou	蠻, 蒙, 顯
Xiang	Changsha	很, 蠻
	Shuangfeng	蠻

See also

• 太 (tài)

Compounds

• 傲很
• 很多 (hěnduō)

• 很少 (hěnshǎo)
• 很是

• 得很 (dehěn)
• 鬥很／斗很

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Japanese

Kanji

很

(uncommon “Hyōgai” kanji)

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

Readings

• Go-on: ごん (gon)
• Kan-on: こん (kon)
• Kun: もとる (motoru, 很る)

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Korean

Hanja

很 (eumhun 패려궂을 흔 (paeryeogujeul heun))

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

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Vietnamese

Han character

很 (ngận, hẩn)

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