空手

Chinese

		emptied; leisure; air emptied; leisure; air; sky; empty; in vain	hand; convenient; ‑er
trad. (空手)		空	手
simp. #(空手)		空	手

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): kōngshǒu

  (Zhuyin): ㄎㄨㄥ ㄕㄡˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): hung¹ sau²
• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): khûng-sú
• Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): khang-chhiú
• Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): ¹khon-seu

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: kōngshǒu
    • Zhuyin: ㄎㄨㄥ ㄕㄡˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: kongshǒu
    • Wade–Giles: kʻung¹-shou³
    • Yale: kūng-shǒu
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: kongshoou
    • Palladius: куншоу (kunšou)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kʰʊŋ⁵⁵ ʂoʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
    • Jyutping: hung¹ sau²
    • Yale: hūng sáu
    • Cantonese Pinyin: hung¹ sau²
    • Guangdong Romanization: hung¹ seo²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /hʊŋ⁵⁵ sɐu̯³⁵/
    • Homophones:

      edit edit 兇手／凶手 空手

• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: khûng-sú
    • Hakka Romanization System: kung^ˊ su^ˋ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: kung¹ su³
    • Sinological IPA: /kʰuŋ²⁴ su³¹/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: khang-chhiú
    • Tâi-lô: khang-tshiú
    • Phofsit Daibuun: qangchiuo
    • IPA (Xiamen): /kʰaŋ⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰiu⁵³/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /kʰaŋ³³ t͡sʰiu⁵⁵⁴/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /kʰaŋ⁴⁴⁻²² t͡sʰiu⁵³/
    • IPA (Taipei): /kʰaŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰiu⁵³/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /kʰaŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ t͡sʰiu⁴¹/
• Wu
  • (Northern: Shanghai)
    • Wugniu: ¹khon-seu
    • MiniDict: khon^平 seu
    • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ¹khon-seu
    • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /kʰoŋ⁵⁵ sɤ²¹/

Verb

空手

1. to be empty-handed
2. to be unarmed
3. to be without a copy, model, diagram, blueprint, etc.

Noun

(deprecated template usage) 空手

1. Short for 空手道 (kōngshǒudào, “karate”).

(deprecated template usage)

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Japanese

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
空	手
から Grade: 1 (ateji)	て Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Compound of 唐 (kara, “Tang Dynasty; China”) +‎ 手 (te, “hand”), as the art was originally transmitted from China to Okinawa, and thence to mainland Japan.

The use of 空 to spell the kara portion is an example of ateji (当て字) to express the idea of “empty-handed” or “unarmed”.

Alternative forms

• 唐手

Noun

空(から)手(て) • (karate) 

1. karate

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 空手道 (karatedō, “karate-ism, school of karate, tao of karate”)
• 空手家 (karateka, “karate practitioner”)

Descendants

Descendants

• Afrikaans: karate
• Czech: karate n
• Danish: karate c
• English: karate
• Icelandic: karate n
• Polish: karate n
• Serbo-Croatian: karate m
• Spanish: karate m

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
空	手
から Grade: 1	て Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Compound of 空 (kara, “empty”) +‎ 手 (te, “hand”).

Noun

空(から)手(て) • (karate) 

1. the state of being empty-handed

   参(まい)った！出(しゅっ)張(ちょう)したのにお土産(みやげ)を忘(わす)れて、空手(からて)で帰(かえ)ってしまった。

   Maitta! Shutchō shita no ni omiyage o wasurete, karate de kaette shimatta.

   Oh no! I went on a trip, but I forgot to get any gifts, and returned empty-handed.

Usage notes

Note that this term in Japanese is a noun, but it is often translated into English as the adjective empty-handed.

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
空	手
あ(き) Grade: 1	て Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Compound of 空 (aki, “empty, open”) +‎ 手 (te, “hand”).

Alternative forms

• 空き手, 明き手, 明手

Noun

空(あき)手(て) • (akite) 

1. (archaic, possibly obsolete) the left, the left hand, the left-hand side (from the way a blind person would hold their cane in their right hand, leaving the left empty)
2. (archaic, possibly obsolete) (by extension) someone with nothing to do, someone unoccupied at the moment, an idler

   Synonyms: 手隙 (tesuki), 透き (tesuki), 手明き (teaki)

Etymology 4

Kanji in this term
空	手
そら Grade: 1	て > で Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Compound of 空 (sora, “sky; out of the blue”) +‎ 手 (te, “hand”). The te changes to de as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Alternative forms

• 虚手

Noun

空(そら)手(で) • (sorade) 

1. (archaic) sudden-onset pain in one's hands or arms with no clear immediate cause, such as due to arthritis or neuralgia

Etymology 5

Kanji in this term
空	手
むな Grade: 1	て > で Grade: 1
kun'yomi

Compound of 空 (muna, “empty, hollow”) +‎ 手 (te, “hand”). The te changes to de as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Alternative forms

• 徒手

Noun

空(むな)手(で) • (munade) 

1. (archaic, possibly obsolete) the state of being empty-handed, bare-handed, unarmed
2. (archaic, possibly obsolete) the state of being empty-handed, doing nothing with no success or positive result

Etymology 6

Kanji in this term
空	手
くう Grade: 1	しゅ Grade: 1
on'yomi

From Middle Chinese 空手 (MC khuwng syuwX, literally “empty + hand”).

Noun

空(くう)手(しゅ) • (kūshu) 

1. the state of being empty-handed, bare-handed, unarmed

   Synonyms: 素手 (sude), 空拳 (kūken), 手ぶら (te-bura)

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Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term
空	手

Noun

空手

1. chữ Hán form of không thủ (“karate”).