鼬

鼬 U+9F2C, 鼬 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-9F2C ← 鼫 [U+9F2B] CJK Unified Ideographs 鼭 → [U+9F2D]

Translingual

Han character

鼬 (Kangxi radical 208, 鼠+5, 18 strokes, cangjie input 竹女中田 (HVLW), four-corner 7571₆, composition ⿰鼠由 or ⿺鼠由)

1. Japanese weasel (Mustela itatsi)

References

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 1528, character 14
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 48427
• Dae Jaweon: page 2064, character 32
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 7, page 4773, character 12
• Unihan data for U+9F2C

Chinese

trad.		鼬
simp. #		鼬
alternative forms		𲀋

Glyph origin

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

	Old Chinese
袖	*ljɯwɢs
岫	*ljɯwɢs
牰	*ljɯwɢs, *lɯwɢs
抽	*l̥ʰɯw
妯	*l̥ʰɯw, *l'ɯwɢ
紬	*l'ɯw
怞	*l'ɯw
鮋	*l'ɯw, *ɦljɯw, *lɯw
菗	*rlɯw
宙	*l'ɯwɢs
胄	*l'ɯwɢs
冑	*l'ɯwɢs
伷	*l'ɯwɢs
駎	*l'ɯwɢs
油	*lɯw, *lɯwɢs
由	*lɯw
蚰	*lɯw
秞	*lɯw
邮	*lɯw
釉	*lɯwɢs
柚	*lɯwɢs, *l'ɯwɢ
鼬	*lɯwɢs
苖	*l'ɯːwɢ, *l̥ʰɯwɢ
笛	*l'ɯːwɢ
迪	*l'ɯːwɢ
頔	*l'ɯːwɢ
軸	*l'ɯwɢ
舳	*l'ɯwɢ

Phono-semantic compound (形聲 / 形声, OC *lɯwɢs): semantic 鼠 (“rat”) + phonetic 由 (OC *lɯw)

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): yòu (you⁴)

  (Zhuyin): ㄧㄡˋ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): jau⁶ / jau²
• Eastern Min (BUC): êu
• Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing): iu⁵
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): iū

  (Teochew, Peng'im): iu⁷

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: yòu
    • Zhuyin: ㄧㄡˋ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: yòu
    • Wade–Giles: yu⁴
    • Yale: yòu
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: yow
    • Palladius: ю (ju)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /joʊ̯⁵¹/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
    • Jyutping: jau⁶ / jau²
    • Yale: yauh / yáu
    • Cantonese Pinyin: jau⁶ / jau²
    • Guangdong Romanization: yeo⁶ / yeo²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /jɐu̯²²/, /jɐu̯³⁵/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: êu
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /iɛu²⁴²/
• Puxian Min
  • (Putian)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: iu⁵
    • Báⁿ-uā-ci̍: iū
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /iu¹¹/
  • (Xianyou)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: iu⁵
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /iu²¹/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: iū
    • Tâi-lô: iū
    • Phofsit Daibuun: iu
    • Sinological IPA (Xiamen): /iu²²/
    • Sinological IPA (Quanzhou): /iu⁴¹/
    • Sinological IPA (Zhangzhou): /iu²²/
    • Sinological IPA (Taipei): /iu³³/
    • Sinological IPA (Kaohsiung): /iu³³/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: iu⁷
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: iū
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /iu¹¹/

---

• Middle Chinese: yuwH

Rime
Character	鼬
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	以 (36)
Final (韻)	尤 (136)
Tone (調)	Departing (H)
Openness (開合)	Open
Division (等)	III
Fanqie	余救切
Baxter	yuwH
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/jɨuH/
Pan Wuyun	/jiuH/
Shao Rongfen	/iəuH/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/juwH/
Li Rong	/iuH/
Wang Li	/jĭəuH/
Bernhard Karlgren	/i̯ə̯uH/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	yòu
Expected Cantonese Reflex	jau6

• Old Chinese

  (Zhengzhang): /*lɯwɢs/

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	鼬
Reading #	1/1
No.	15533
Phonetic component	由
Rime group	奧
Rime subdivision	2
Corresponding MC rime	狖
Old Chinese	/*lɯwɢs/

Definitions

鼬

1. weasel
2. (by extension) mustelid

Compounds

• 白鼬 (báiyòu)
• 臭鼬 (chòuyòu, “skunk”)
• 袋鼬 (dàiyòu, “quoll”)
• 青鼬 (qīngyòu)
• 髟鼬
• 黃鼬 / 黄鼬 (huángyòu)
• 鼬鯊 / 鼬鲨 (yòushā, “tiger shark”)
• 鼬鼠 (yòushǔ)

References

• “鼬”, 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

Shinjitai (extended)	𫠘
Print standard	鼬

Kanji

鼬

(Hyōgai kanji, kyūjitai kanji, shinjitai form 𫠘)

1. weasel

Readings

• Go-on: ゆ (yu)
• Kan-on: ゆう (yū)
• Kun: いたち (itachi, 鼬)

Pronunciation

Kanji in this term
鼬
いたち Hyōgai
kun'yomi

Alternative spellings
鼬鼠 鼪 (rare) 貂 (rare) 鼶 (rare)

• (Tokyo) いたち [ìtáchí] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [ita̠t͡ɕi]

Noun

鼬(いたち) or 鼬(イタチ) • (itachi) 

1. weasel
   • 2020 March 21, Kimiko Ueno, “Greedy Bears”, in BNA ビー・エヌ・エー [BNA], episode 5, spoken by Marie Itami (Michiyo Murase), Toho/Netflix:

     ミ・ン・ク！イタチじゃなくて、ミンクのマリー！

     Mi n ku! Itachi janakute , minku no Marī!

     MI - N - K! I'm not a weasel, I'm Marie the mink!

Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary).

Derived terms

• 鼬(いたち)ごっこ (itachi-gokko)
• 鼬鮫(イタチザメ) (itachizame)
• 鼬萩(イタチハギ) (itachihagi)
• 鼬椒(いたちはじかみ) (itachi hajikami)
• 鎌鼬(かまいたち) (kamaitachi)
• 毛長鼬(ケナガイタチ) (kenagaitachi)
• 白鼬(シロイタチ) (shiroitachi)
• 猫鼬(ねこいたち) (nekoitachi)

References

• “^▲鼬”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia]‎^[2] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2025

Korean

Hanja

鼬 • (yu) (hangeul 유, revised yu, McCune–Reischauer yu, Yale yu)

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

Vietnamese

Han character

鼬: Hán Việt readings: dứu

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