寸

See also: 手 and 吋

寸	U+5BF8, 寸 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-5BF8

← 寷
[U+5BF7]

CJK Unified Ideographs

对 →
[U+5BF9]

⼨	U+2F28, ⼨ KANGXI RADICAL INCH

← ⼧
[U+2F27]

Kangxi Radicals

⼩ →
[U+2F29]

TranslingualEdit

Stroke order

ReferencesEdit

KangXi: page 293, character 32
Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 7411
Dae Jaweon: page 581, character 4
Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 503, character 8
Unihan data for U+5BF8

ChineseEdit

simp. and trad.		寸

Glyph originEdit

Historical forms of the character 寸
Western Zhou	Warring States	Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Bronze inscriptions	Qin slip script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

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

	Old Chinese
村	*sʰuːn
忖	*sʰuːnʔ
刌	*sʰuːnʔ
寸	*sʰuːns

Ideogram (指事) – a position on the forearm where the pulse can be palpated by compressing the radial artery. It is called 寸口 in modern Chinese, and the meaning of a unit of measurement is derived from the distance between the wrist and this position. Compare 又, 手, 九, 爪.

Etymology 1Edit

PronunciationEdit

Mandarin
(Standard)
(Pinyin): cùn (cun⁴)

(Zhuyin): ㄘㄨㄣˋ

(Chengdu, SP): cen⁴

(Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): цун (cun, III)
Cantonese (Jyutping): cyun³
Gan (Wiktionary): cun³
Hakka
(Sixian, PFS): chhun

(Meixian, Guangdong): cun⁴
Jin (Wiktionary): cung³
Min Bei (KCR): cho̿ng
Min Dong (BUC): chóng
Min Nan
(Hokkien, POJ): chhùn / chhǹg

(Teochew, Peng'im): cung³
Wu (Wiktionary): ²tshen
Xiang (Wiktionary): cen⁴

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: cùn
  - Zhuyin: ㄘㄨㄣˋ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: cùn
  - Wade–Giles: tsʻun⁴
  - Yale: tswùn
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: tsuenn
  - Palladius: цунь (cunʹ)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰwən⁵¹/
- (Chengdu)
  - Sichuanese Pinyin: cen⁴
  - Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: cen
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰən²¹³/
- (Dungan)
  - Cyrillic and Wiktionary: цун (cun, III)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰuŋ⁴⁴/
  (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: cyun³
  - Yale: chyun
  - Cantonese Pinyin: tsyn³
  - Guangdong Romanization: qun³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡ʃʰyːn³³/
Gan
- (Nanchang)
  - Wiktionary: cun³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰun²¹³/
Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: chhun
  - Hakka Romanization System: cun
  - Hagfa Pinyim: cun⁴
  - Sinological IPA: /t͡sʰun⁵⁵/
- (Meixian)
  - Guangdong: cun⁴
  - Sinological IPA: /t͡sʰun⁵³/
Jin
- (Taiyuan)⁺
  - Wiktionary: cung³
  - Sinological IPA (old-style): /t͡sʰũŋ⁴⁵/
Min Bei
- (Jian'ou)
  - Kienning Colloquial Romanized: cho̿ng
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰɔŋ³³/
Min Dong
- (Fuzhou)
  - Bàng-uâ-cê: chóng
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰouŋ²¹³/
Min Nan
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: chhùn
  - Tâi-lô: tshùn
  - Phofsit Daibuun: zhuxn
  - IPA (Quanzhou): /t͡sʰun⁴¹/
  - IPA (Taipei): /t͡sʰun¹¹/
  - IPA (Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Kaohsiung): /t͡sʰun²¹/
- (Hokkien: Xiamen)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: chhǹg
  - Tâi-lô: tshǹg
  - Phofsit Daibuun: zhngx
  - IPA (Xiamen): /t͡sʰŋ̍²¹/

Note:

chhùn - literary;
chhǹg - vernacular.

(Teochew)
- Peng'im: cung³
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: tshùng
- Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰuŋ²¹³/

Wu

(Shanghainese)
- Wiktionary: ²tshen
- Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰəɲ³⁴/

Xiang

(Changsha)
- Wiktionary: cen⁴
- Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʰən⁴⁵/

Middle Chinese: /t͡sʰuən^H/

Rime
Character	寸
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	清 (14)
Final (韻)	魂 (55)
Tone (調)	Departing (H)
Openness (開合)	Closed
Division (等)	I
Fanqie	倉困切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/t͡sʰuən^H/
Pan Wuyun	/t͡sʰuon^H/
Shao Rongfen	/t͡sʰuən^H/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/t͡sʰwən^H/
Li Rong	/t͡sʰuən^H/
Wang Li	/t͡sʰuən^H/
Bernard Karlgren	/t͡sʰuən^H/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	cùn
Expected Cantonese Reflex	cyun³

Old Chinese
(Baxter–Sagart): /*[tsʰ]ˤu[n]-s/

(Zhengzhang): /*sʰuːns/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	寸
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	cùn
Middle Chinese	‹ tshwon^H ›
Old Chinese	/*[tsʰ]ˁu[n]-s/
English	thumb; inch
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	寸
Reading #	1/1
No.	1913
Phonetic component	寸
Rime group	文
Rime subdivision	2
Corresponding MC rime	寸
Old Chinese	/*sʰuːns/

DefinitionsEdit

寸

(units of measure) A cun or Chinese inch, a traditional unit of length of about 3 cm.
1. (Mainland China) Short for 市寸 (shìcùn).
2. (Hong Kong) Legally defined as the tsun of 3.71475 cm.
(informal) Short for 英寸 (yīngcùn, “inch”).
(figurative) very short or little
(traditional Chinese medicine) cunkou pulse; radial artery pulse at the wrist
(Mandarin, colloquial) coincidental; unbelievable; opportune
a surname

Coordinate termsEdit

分 (fēn, “¹⁄₁₀ cun”)
尺 (chǐ, “10 cun”)

CompoundsEdit

Derived terms from 寸

一寸丹心
一寸秋波
一寸赤心
三寸丁
三寸之舌
三寸舌
京八寸
公寸 (gōngcùn)
分寸 (fēncùn)
寸兵
寸功 (cùngōng)
寸口
寸土 (cùntǔ)
寸土寸金 (cùntǔcùnjīn)
寸土尺地
寸地尺天
寸子
寸心 (cùnxīn)
寸晷
寸札
寸楮
寸步 (cùnbù)
寸田
寸田尺宅
寸甲不留
寸男尺女
寸碧
寸草
寸草不生 (cùncǎobùshēng)
寸草不留
寸草心
寸衷
寸金
寸隙
尺寸 (chǐcùn)
尺寸之功 (chǐcùn zhī gōng)

寸長尺技／寸长尺技
寸長尺短／寸长尺短
寸陰／寸阴
寸陰尺璧／寸阴尺璧
寸陰若歲／寸阴若岁
寸馬豆人／寸马豆人
尺短寸長／尺短寸长
幫寸／帮寸 (bāngcùn)
徑寸／径寸
得寸進尺／得寸进尺 (décùnjìnchǐ)
愁腸寸斷／愁肠寸断
手無寸鐵／手无寸铁 (shǒuwúcùntiě)
方寸之間／方寸之间
方寸亂矣／方寸乱矣
方寸已亂／方寸已乱
柔腸寸斷／柔肠寸断
沒分寸／没分寸
沒尺寸／没尺寸
爛頭寸／烂头寸 (làntóucùn)
猿腸寸斷／猿肠寸断
獨守尺寸／独守尺寸
積銖累寸／积铢累寸
肝腸寸斷／肝肠寸断
詘寸伸尺／诎寸伸尺
詘寸信尺／诎寸信尺
調頭寸／调头寸
身無寸縷／身无寸缕
軋頭寸／轧头寸
迴腸寸斷／回肠寸断
進寸退尺／进寸退尺
銖積寸累／铢积寸累
雞屎落塗，也有三寸煙／鸡屎落涂，也有三寸烟 (ke sái lo̍h thô͘, iā ū saⁿ chhùn ian) (Min Nan)
頭寸／头寸 (tóucùn)
風檐寸晷／风檐寸晷
風簷寸晷／风檐寸晷

DescendantsEdit

Sino-Xenic (寸):

→ Japanese: 寸(すん) (sun)
→ Korean: 촌(寸) (chon)
→ Vietnamese: thốn (寸)

Etymology 2Edit

For pronunciation and definitions of 寸 – see 忖 (“to ponder; to speculate; guess, suppose, conjecture”). (This character, 寸, is a variant form of 忖.)