彷彿

See also: 仿佛

Chinese

		phonetic
trad. (彷彿/仿佛)		彷/仿	彿/佛
simp. (仿佛)		仿	佛
alternative forms		髣髴 眆䀟 彷髴 㕫咈

Etymology

From s:zh:淮南子/俶真訓

天含和而未降，地懷氣而未揚，虛無寂寞，蕭條霄雿，無有彷彿，氣遂而大通冥冥者也 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

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天含和而未降，地怀气而未扬，虚无寂寞，萧条霄雿，无有彷佛，气遂而大通冥冥者也 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: Huainanzi, 2^nd century BCE

tiān hán hé ér wèi jiàng, dì huái qì ér wèi yáng, xū wú jìmò, xiāotiáo xiāo雿, wú yǒu pángfó, qì suì ér dà tōng míngmíng zhě yě [Pinyin]

The yang energy contained in the sky has not yet declined, and the yin energy contained in the earth has not yet risen. There is nothingness and loneliness between heaven and earth, a deep depression, nothingness and vagueness, and the qi has only been generated and circulated in the deep darkness.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): fǎngfú

  (Zhuyin): ㄈㄤˇ ㄈㄨˊ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): fong² fat¹

• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): hóng-hut

  (Teochew, Peng'im): huang² hug⁴

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: fǎngfú
    • Zhuyin: ㄈㄤˇ ㄈㄨˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: fǎngfú
    • Wade–Giles: fang³-fu²
    • Yale: fǎng-fú
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: faangfwu
    • Palladius: фанфу (fanfu)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /fɑŋ²¹⁴⁻²¹ fu³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
    • Jyutping: fong² fat¹
    • Yale: fóng fāt
    • Cantonese Pinyin: fong² fat⁷
    • Guangdong Romanization: fong² fed¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /fɔːŋ³⁵ fɐt̚⁵/
    • Homophones:

      edit edit 彷彿／彷佛 恍惚

• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: hóng-hut
    • Tâi-lô: hóng-hut
    • Phofsit Daibuun: hofnghud
    • IPA (Xiamen): /hɔŋ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ hut̚³²/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /hɔŋ⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ hut̚⁵/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /hɔŋ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ hut̚³²/
    • IPA (Taipei): /hɔŋ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ hut̚³²/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /hɔŋ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ hut̚³²/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: huang² hug⁴
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: huáng huk
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /huaŋ⁵²⁻³⁵ huk̚²/

---

• Middle Chinese: phjangX phjut

Rime
Character	彷	彿
Reading #	2/2	1/1
Initial (聲)	滂 (2)	滂 (2)
Final (韻)	陽 (106)	物 (60)
Tone (調)	Rising (X)	Checked (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed	Closed
Division (等)	III	III
Fanqie	妃兩切	敷勿切
Baxter	phjangX	phjut
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/pʰʉɐŋX/	/pʰɨut̚/
Pan Wuyun	/pʰʷiɐŋX/	/pʰiut̚/
Shao Rongfen	/pʰiuɑŋX/	/pʰiuət̚/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/pʰuaŋX/	/pʰut̚/
Li Rong	/pʰiuaŋX/	/pʰiuət̚/
Wang Li	/pʰĭwaŋX/	/pʰĭuət̚/
Bernard Karlgren	/pʰiwaŋX/	/pʰi̯uət̚/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	fǎng	fu
Expected Cantonese Reflex	fong2	fat1

Adverb

彷彿

1. as if; as though
2. similar to
3. vague, seeming like

Synonyms

• (as if):

edit

• 不啻 (bùchì) (literary)
• 似 (ci⁵) (Cantonese, Classical Chinese)
• 似乎 (sìhū)
• 似如 (si⁴ y²) (Xiang)
• 像 (xiàng)
• 像係／像系 (Hakka)
• 像是 (xiàngshì)
• 儼如／俨如 (yǎnrú) (literary)
• 儼然／俨然 (yǎnrán)
• 儼若／俨若 (yǎnruò) (literary)
• 勝如／胜如 (⁵sen-zy) (Wu)
• 好似 (hǎosì)
• 好像 (hǎoxiàng)
• 如同 (rútóng)
• 好比 (hǎobǐ)
• 宛 (Classical Chinese, or compounds only)
• 宛如 (wǎnrú) (literary)
• 宛然 (wǎnrán) (literary)
• 宛若 (wǎnruò) (literary)
• 就像 (jiùxiàng)
• 彷彿／仿佛 (fǎngfú)
• 忽如 (hūrú) (literary)
• 恍若 (huǎngruò)
• 敢若 (Hokkien)
• 敢若是 (Hokkien)
• 𣍐輸／𫧃输 (bē-su) (Hokkien)
• 有如 (yǒurú) (formal)
• 猶似／犹似 (yóusì) (literary)
• 猶像／犹像 (yóuxiàng) (literary)
• 猶如／犹如 (yóurú) (formal)
• 甲像 (Hokkien)
• 甲像是 (Hokkien)
• 甲親像／甲亲像 (Hokkien)
• 看上去 (kàn shàngqù)
• 看似 (kànsì)
• 看來／看来 (kànlái)
• 看樣子／看样子 (kànyàngzi)
• 看起來／看起来 (kànqilai)
• 若 (Classical Chinese, or compounds only)
• 若像 (Hokkien)
• 若親像／若亲像 (Hokkien)
• 表面上 (biǎomiànshang)
• 親像／亲像 (Hakka, Hokkien)
• 象 (xiàng)
• 貌似 (màosì)
• 賽可／赛可 (Ningbonese)
• 較像／较像 (Hokkien)
• 較像是／较像是 (Hokkien)
• 較親像／较亲像 (Hokkien)
• 顯得／显得 (xiǎnde)

 

Japanese

Kanji in this term
彷	彿
ほう Hyōgai	ふつ Hyōgai
on'yomi

Alternative forms

• 髣髴

Noun

彷(ほう)彿(ふつ) • (hōfutsu) 

1. close resemblance
2. a reminder of the past

Verb

彷(ほう)彿(ふつ)する • (hōfutsu suru) suru (stem 彷(ほう)彿(ふつ)し (hōfutsu shi), past 彷(ほう)彿(ふつ)した (hōfutsu shita))

1. be reminiscent of

Conjugation

Conjugation of "彷彿する" (See Appendix:Japanese verbs.)

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms")
Mizenkei ("imperfective")	彷彿し	ほうふつし	hōfutsu shi
Ren’yōkei ("continuative")	彷彿し	ほうふつし	hōfutsu shi
Shūshikei ("terminal")	彷彿する	ほうふつする	hōfutsu suru
Rentaikei ("attributive")	彷彿する	ほうふつする	hōfutsu suru
Kateikei ("hypothetical")	彷彿すれ	ほうふつすれ	hōfutsu sure
Meireikei ("imperative")	彷彿せよ¹ 彷彿しろ²	ほうふつせよ¹ ほうふつしろ²	hōfutsu seyo¹ hōfutsu shiro²
Key constructions
Passive	彷彿される	ほうふつされる	hōfutsu sareru
Causative	彷彿させる 彷彿さす	ほうふつさせる ほうふつさす	hōfutsu saseru hōfutsu sasu
Potential	彷彿できる	ほうふつできる	hōfutsu dekiru
Volitional	彷彿しよう	ほうふつしよう	hōfutsu shiyō
Negative	彷彿しない	ほうふつしない	hōfutsu shinai
Negative continuative	彷彿せず	ほうふつせず	hōfutsu sezu
Formal	彷彿します	ほうふつします	hōfutsu shimasu
Perfective	彷彿した	ほうふつした	hōfutsu shita
Conjunctive	彷彿して	ほうふつして	hōfutsu shite
Hypothetical conditional	彷彿すれば	ほうふつすれば	hōfutsu sureba
¹ Written imperative ² Spoken imperative