膏肓

Chinese

		ointment; paste	region between heart and diaphragm
trad. (膏肓)		膏	肓
simp. #(膏肓)		膏	肓

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): gāohuāng

  (Zhuyin): ㄍㄠ ㄏㄨㄤ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): gou¹ fong¹
• Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): ko͘-hong / ko͘-bông / ko-hong

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: gāohuāng
    • Zhuyin: ㄍㄠ ㄏㄨㄤ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: gaohuang
    • Wade–Giles: kao¹-huang¹
    • Yale: gāu-hwāng
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: gauhuang
    • Palladius: гаохуан (gaoxuan)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kɑʊ̯⁵⁵ xu̯ɑŋ⁵⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: gou¹ fong¹
    • Yale: gōu fōng
    • Cantonese Pinyin: gou¹ fong¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: gou¹ fong¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kou̯⁵⁵ fɔːŋ⁵⁵/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ko͘-hong
    • Tâi-lô: koo-hong
    • Phofsit Daibuun: ko'hofng
    • Sinological IPA (Quanzhou): /kɔ³³ hɔŋ³³/
  • (Hokkien: General Taiwanese)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ko͘-bông
    • Tâi-lô: koo-bông
    • Phofsit Daibuun: ko'boong
    • Sinological IPA (Taipei): /kɔ⁴⁴⁻³³ bɔŋ²⁴/
    • Sinological IPA (Kaohsiung): /kɔ⁴⁴⁻³³ bɔŋ²³/
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Zhangzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ko-hong
    • Tâi-lô: ko-hong
    • Phofsit Daibuun: koi'hofng
    • Sinological IPA (Xiamen, Zhangzhou): /ko⁴⁴⁻²² hɔŋ⁴⁴/

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• Middle Chinese: kaw xwang

Rime
Character	膏	肓
Reading #	1/2	1/1
Initial (聲)	見 (28)	曉 (32)
Final (韻)	豪 (89)	唐 (102)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Closed
Division (等)	I	I
Fanqie	古勞切	呼光切
Baxter	kaw	xwang
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/kɑu/	/hwɑŋ/
Pan Wuyun	/kɑu/	/hʷɑŋ/
Shao Rongfen	/kɑu/	/xuɑŋ/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/kaw/	/hwaŋ/
Li Rong	/kɑu/	/xuɑŋ/
Wang Li	/kɑu/	/xuɑŋ/
Bernhard Karlgren	/kɑu/	/xwɑŋ/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	gāo	huāng
Expected Cantonese Reflex	gou1	fong1

• Old Chinese

  (Zhengzhang): /*kaːw  hmaːŋ/

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	膏	肓
Reading #	1/2	1/1
No.	3727	12650
Phonetic component	高	亡
Rime group	宵	陽
Rime subdivision	1	0
Corresponding MC rime	髙	荒
Old Chinese	/*kaːw/	/*hmaːŋ/

Noun

膏肓

1. (traditional Chinese medicine) fat region between the heart and the diaphragm (near the apex of the heart, a region which is regarded in traditional Chinese medicine as being unreachable by medicament); vital organs; finalized disease; finalized illness; suffering of the humans and hardships of the popular

Derived terms

• 泉石膏肓
• 病入膏肓 (bìngrùgāohuāng)
• 病在膏肓
• 病染膏肓
• 膏肓之疾

Japanese

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
膏	肓
こう Jinmeiyō	こう Hyōgai
on'yomi

From Middle Chinese 膏肓 (MC kaw xwang).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ko̞ːko̞ː]
• (Tokyo) こーこー [kòókóó] (Heiban – [0])

Noun

膏(こう)肓(こう) • (kōkō) ^{←かうくわう (kaukwau)?}

1. vital organs

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
膏	肓
こう Jinmeiyō	もう Hyōgai
on'yomi

Misreading of the 肓 kanji as 盲 (mō, “blind”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ko̞ːmo̞ː]
• (Tokyo) こーもー [kòómóó] (Heiban – [0])

Noun

膏(こう)肓(もう) • (kōmō) ^{←かうまう (kaumau)?}

1. (proscribed) alternative form of 膏肓 (kōkō)

References

• “^▲膏^▲肓”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia]‎^[1] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2026