須

See also: 须, 鬚, 䇓, and 𩓣

須 U+9808, 須 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-9808 ← 頇 [U+9807] CJK Unified Ideographs 頉 → [U+9809]

Translingual

Han character

須 (Kangxi radical 181, 頁+3, 12 strokes, cangjie input 竹竹一月金 (HHMBC), four-corner 2128₆, composition ⿰彡頁)

Derived characters

• 𠾫, 𣛪, 𦄼(𬘳), 𨅑, 𨬗, 𣌌, 𢊼, 蕦, 𥳗, 𩅺, 鬚, 嬃(媭), 𢄼(𫷈), 澃, 𩒹, 盨(𪾔), 䇓, 𩓾, 𦅓, 𮖶, 頾, 𢒷, 𩔾, 𪆦, 𡡓, 䫇, 𩓣, 頿, 䫠

Related characters

• 须 (Simplified form of 須 and 鬚 in mainland China)

Descendants

• ス (Katakana character derived from Man'yōgana)

References

• KangXi: page 1399, character 23
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 43352
• Dae Jaweon: page 1916, character 4
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 7, page 4358, character 1
• Unihan data for U+9808

Chinese

trad.		須
simp.		须*
alternative forms		湏 ⿰⿱分巾頁 ⿰⿱分立頁 ⿰⿱分豆頁

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 須
Shang	Western Zhou	Warring States	Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Chu slip and silk script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

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

	Old Chinese
盨	*sraʔ
須	*so
鬚	*so
嬃	*so
蕦	*so

Pictogram (象形): 彡 (“hair”) + 頁 (“head”) – a head with hair on its side – beard; whiskers — original character of 鬚 (OC *so). Originally a single picture, but abstracted in the seal script into a compound.

Etymology 1

“to wait”

Schuessler (2007), reconstructing the Old Chinese as *sno, suggests that it is probably a causative derivation from 懦 (OC *njo, “weak; soft”), literally “to make (time) pliant”.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): xū (xu¹)

  (Zhuyin): ㄒㄩ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): seoi¹
• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): sî
• Min Bei (KCR): sṳ́
• Min Dong (BUC): sṳ̆
• Min Nan

  (Hokkien, POJ): su / si

  (Teochew, Peng'im): su¹

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: xū
    • Zhuyin: ㄒㄩ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: syu
    • Wade–Giles: hsü¹
    • Yale: syū
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: shiu
    • Palladius: сюй (sjuj)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɕy⁵⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: seoi¹
    • Yale: sēui
    • Cantonese Pinyin: soey¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: sêu¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sɵy̯⁵⁵/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: sî
    • Hakka Romanization System: xi´
    • Hagfa Pinyim: xi¹
    • Sinological IPA: /ɕi²⁴/
• Min Bei
  • (Jian'ou)
    • Kienning Colloquial Romanized: sṳ́
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sy⁵⁴/
• Min Dong
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: sṳ̆
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sy⁵⁵/
• Min Nan
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, General Taiwanese)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: su
    • Tâi-lô: su
    • Phofsit Daibuun: sw
    • IPA (Xiamen, Taipei, Kaohsiung): /su⁴⁴/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /su³³/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: si
    • Tâi-lô: si
    • Phofsit Daibuun: sy
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /ɕi⁴⁴/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: su¹
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: su
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /su³³/

---

• Middle Chinese: sju

Rime
Character	須
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	心 (16)
Final (韻)	虞 (24)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed
Division (等)	III
Fanqie	相俞切
Baxter	sju
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/sɨo/
Pan Wuyun	/sio/
Shao Rongfen	/sio/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/suə̆/
Li Rong	/sio/
Wang Li	/sĭu/
Bernard Karlgren	/si̯u/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	xū
Expected Cantonese Reflex	seoi1

• Old Chinese

  (Baxter–Sagart): /*[s]o/

  (Zhengzhang): /*so/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	須
Reading #	2/2
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	xū
Middle Chinese	‹ sju ›
Old Chinese	/*[s]o/
English	斯須 a short time
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	須
Reading #	1/1
No.	13955
Phonetic component	須
Rime group	侯
Rime subdivision	0
Corresponding MC rime	須
Old Chinese	/*so/

Definitions

須

1. must; have to; should
2. (alt. form 䇓／𰩧, 𩓣) ^† to wait
3. (alt. form 需) ^† to need
4. (literary) to halt; to bring to an end
5. (literary) to use
6. (literary, or in compounds) short moment

   須臾／须臾  ―  xūyú  ―  in an instant

7. a surname: Xu

Synonyms

• (must): 須要／须要 (xūyào)
• (to use):

• 使出 (shǐchū)
• 使用 (shǐyòng)
• 利用 (lìyòng)
• 動用／动用 (dòngyòng)
• 取用 (qǔyòng)
• 吸納／吸纳 (xīnà)
• 善用 (shànyòng) (to put to good use)
• 套用 (tàoyòng) (to apply mechanically)
• 實用／实用 (shíyòng)
• 應用／应用 (yìngyòng)
• 採用／采用 (cǎiyòng)
• 採納／采纳 (cǎinà)
• 搬 (bān) (to apply mechanically)
• 搬動／搬动 (bāndòng)
• 施用 (shīyòng)
• 沿用 (yányòng) (to continue to use)
• 用 (yòng)
• 硬套 (yìngtào) (to apply mechanically)
• 起動／起动 (qǐdòng) (Quanzhou & Xiamen Hokkien)
• 運用／运用 (yùnyòng)
• 錄用／录用 (lùyòng)

 

• (to halt):

• 中斷／中断 (zhōngduàn)
• 中止 (zhōngzhǐ)
• 休止 (xiūzhǐ)
• 停 (tíng)
• 停歇 (tíngxiē)
• 停止 (tíngzhǐ)
• 夭閼／夭阏 (yǎo'è)
• 干休 (gānxiū) (literary)
• 放煞 (Min Nan)
• 斷站／断站 (Min Nan)
• 斷節／断节 (Min Nan)
• 暫停／暂停 (zàntíng) (temporarily)
• 歇 (xiē)
• 止 (zhǐ) (literary, or in compounds)
• 止息 (zhǐxī)
• 止煞 (Min Nan)
• 煞 (Min Nan)
• 甘休 (gānxiū) (to be willing to give up)
• 終止／终止 (zhōngzhǐ)
• 絕／绝 (jué) (literary, or in compounds)
• 罷／罢
• 罷休／罢休 (bàxiū) (chiefly in the negative)
• 罷手／罢手 (bàshǒu)
• 間斷／间断
• 頓／顿

 

• (short moment):

• 一剎／一刹 (yīchà)
• 一剎那／一刹那 (yīchànà)
• 一會兒／一会儿
• 一目𥍉仔 (chi̍t-ba̍k-nih-á) (Min Nan)
• 一瞬間／一瞬间 (yīshùnjiān)
• 剎那／刹那
• 少刻 (shǎokè)
• 少時／少时
• 少頃／少顷 (shǎoqǐng)
• 時刻／时刻 (shíkè)
• 有頃／有顷 (yǒuqǐng) (literary)
• 漏 (lòu) (literary, or in compounds)
• 片刻 (piànkè)
• 瞬息 (shùnxī)
• 瞬間／瞬间 (shùnjiān)
• 霎時／霎时 (shàshí)
• 頃刻／顷刻 (qǐngkè)

 

Usage notes

For the sense of "must" or "need to", this word is frequently mistaken with 需 (xū). 須／须 is usually followed by a verb or an adverb while 需 is usually followed by a noun.

Compounds

• 不時之須／不时之须
• 不須／不须 (bùxū)
• 也須／也须
• 些須／些须 (xiēxū)
• 何須／何须 (héxū)
• 但須／但须
• 便須／便须
• 務須／务须 (wùxū)
• 只須／只须
• 女大須嫁／女大须嫁
• 女長須嫁／女长须嫁
• 必須／必须 (bìxū)
• 急須／急须 (jíxū)
• 應須／应须
• 摩厲以須／摩厉以须
• 斯須／斯须 (sīxū)
• 是須／是须
• 會須／会须 (huìxū)
• 毋須／毋须 (wúxū)
• 無須／无须 (wúxū)
• 直須／直须 (zhíxū)
• 相須為命／相须为命
• 相須而行／相须而行
• 磨厲以須／磨厉以须
• 磨礪以須／磨砺以须
• 終須／终须
• 肩須拍／肩须拍
• 莫須有／莫须有 (mòxūyǒu)
• 須不是／须不是
• 須彌山／须弥山
• 須彌座／须弥座
• 須待／须待
• 須慮／须虑
• 須捷／须捷
• 須是／须是
• 須然／须然
• 須用／须用
• 須留／须留 (xūliú)
• 須眉／须眉 (xūméi)
• 須知／须知 (xūzhī)
• 須索／须索
• 須至／须至
• 須臾／须臾 (xūyú)
• 須要／须要 (xūyào)
• 須陀洹／须陀洹

 

Etymology 2

For pronunciation and definitions of 須 – see 鬚 (“beard; whisker; antenna; feeler; etc.”). (This character, 須, is a variant form of 鬚.)

References

• Dictionary of Chinese Character Variants (教育部異體字字典), A04541
• “須”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎^[1], 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–

Japanese

Kanji

須

(common “Jōyō” kanji)

1. mandatory, necessary
2. moment, short while
3. kanji used to transliterate Buddhist terms borrowed from Sanskrit

Readings

• Go-on: す (su, Jōyō)
• Kan-on: しゅ (shu)
• Kun: すべからく (subekaraku, 須く); もちいる (mochiiru, 須いる)^{←もちゐる (motiwiru, 須ゐる, historical)}; もとめる (motomeru, 須める)
• Nanori: まつ (matsu); もち (mochi); もとむ (motomu)

Compounds

Compounds

• 須弥(しゅみ)座(ざ) (Shumi-za)
• 須達(しゅだつ) (Shudatsu)
• 須弥(しゅみ)壇(だん) (shumidan)
• 須(しゅ)菩提(ぼだい) (Shubodai), 須(す)菩提(ぼだい) (Subodai)
• 須弥(しゅみ) (Shumi)
• 須弥山(しゅみせん) (Shumi-sen), 須弥山(すみせん) (Sumi-sen)
• 須臾(しゅゆ) (shuyu)
• 須要(しゅよう) (shuyō)
• 須佐之(すさの)男(おの)命(みこと) (Susanō no Mikoto)
• 須要(すよう) (suyō)
• 必須(ひっす) (hissu), 必須(ひっしゅ) (hisshu)

Usage notes

Used in Old Japanese as 借音 (shakuon) kana for ⟨su⟩ and ⟨zu⟩.

Korean

Hanja

須 • (su) (hangeul 수, revised su, McCune–Reischauer su, Yale swu)

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

Tày

Noun

須 (transliteration needed)

1. Nôm form of tu (“door”).

Vietnamese

Han character

須: Hán Nôm readings: tua, tu

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

References

• Nom Foundation