Wiktionary

草

See also: 艸
草 U+8349, 草
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-8349
← 荈
[U+8348] 		CJK Unified Ideographs 荊 →
[U+834A]

TranslingualEdit

Stroke order
 
Stroke order (Hong Kong)
 
Stroke order (Taiwan)
 

Han characterEdit

草 (Kangxi radical 140, 艸+6, 10 strokes in traditional Chinese and Korean, 9 strokes in simplified Chinese and Japanese, cangjie input 廿日十 (TAJ), four-corner 44406, composition ⿱艹早)

Derived charactersEdit

ReferencesEdit

  • KangXi: page 1030, character 17
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 30945
  • Dae Jaweon: page 1489, character 14
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 5, page 3203, character 4
  • Unihan data for U+8349

ChineseEdit

trad. 草
simp. # 草

Glyph originEdit

Historical forms of the character 草
Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Small seal script Transcribed ancient scripts
   
Characters in the same phonetic series (早) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
Old Chinese
早 *ʔsuːʔ
草 *sʰuːʔ
愺 *sʰuːʔ
騲 *sʰuːʔ
皁 *zuːʔ
皂 *zuːʔ

Phono-semantic compound (形聲, OC *sʰuːʔ): semantic 艹 (“grass; plant”) + phonetic 早 (OC *ʔsuːʔ). Originally referred to 皂, and later borrowed for the “grass” sense, replacing 艸.

Etymology 1Edit

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *r-tswa-n (“grass”); cognate with Tibetan རྩྭ (rtswa, “grass”) (Schuessler, 2007; STEDT).

Alternatively, it may be related to 芻 (OC *sʰro, “hay”), from Austroasiatic; compare Mon ချဲ (“grass; weeds; hay”) (Schuessler, 2007).

PronunciationEdit

Note:
  • chāu - vernacular;
  • chō̤ - literary.
  • Min Nan
    • Note:
    • chháu - vernacular;
    • chhó/chhó͘ - literary.
    Note:
    • co2 - vernacular;
    • cao2 - literary.
  • Wu
  • Xiang
    • Dialectal data
    Variety Location 草
    Mandarin Beijing /t͡sʰɑu²¹⁴/
    Harbin /t͡sʰau²¹³/
    Tianjin /t͡sʰɑu¹³/
    Jinan /t͡sʰɔ⁵⁵/
    Qingdao /t͡sʰɔ⁵⁵/
    Zhengzhou /t͡sʰau⁵³/
    Xi'an /t͡sʰau⁵³/
    Xining /t͡sʰɔ⁵³/
    Yinchuan /t͡sʰɔ⁵³/
    Lanzhou /t͡sʰɔ⁴⁴²/
    Ürümqi /t͡sʰɔ⁵¹/
    Wuhan /t͡sʰau⁴²/
    Chengdu /t͡sʰau⁵³/
    Guiyang /t͡sʰao⁴²/
    Kunming /t͡sʰɔ⁵³/
    Nanjing /t͡sʰɔo²¹²/
    Hefei /t͡sʰɔ²⁴/
    Jin Taiyuan /t͡sʰau⁵³/
    Pingyao /t͡sʰɔ⁵³/
    Hohhot /t͡sʰɔ⁵³/
    Wu Shanghai /t͡sʰɔ³⁵/
    Suzhou /t͡sʰæ⁵¹/
    Hangzhou /t͡sʰɔ⁵³/
    Wenzhou /t͡sʰɜ³⁵/
    Hui Shexian /t͡sʰɔ³⁵/
    Tunxi /t͡sʰə³¹/
    Xiang Changsha /t͡sʰau⁴¹/
    Xiangtan /t͡sʰaɯ⁴²/
    Gan Nanchang /t͡sʰɑu²¹³/
    Hakka Meixian /t͡sʰau³¹/
    Taoyuan /t͡sʰo³¹/
    Cantonese Guangzhou /t͡sʰou³⁵/
    Nanning /t͡sʰu³⁵/
    Hong Kong /t͡sʰou³⁵/
    Min Xiamen (Min Nan) /t͡sʰo⁵³/
    /t͡sʰau⁵³/
    Fuzhou (Min Dong) /t͡sʰau³²/
    Jian'ou (Min Bei) /t͡sʰau²¹/
    Shantou (Min Nan) /t͡sʰau⁵³/
    /t͡sʰo⁵³/
    Haikou (Min Nan) /sau²¹³/
    Rime
    Character 草
    Reading # 1/1
    Initial (聲) 清 (14)
    Final (韻) 豪 (89)
    Tone (調) Rising (X)
    Openness (開合) Open
    Division (等) I
    Fanqie 采老切
    Reconstructions
    Zhengzhang
    Shangfang         		/t͡sʰɑuX/
    Pan
    Wuyun         		/t͡sʰɑuX/
    Shao
    Rongfen         		/t͡sʰɑuX/
    Edwin
    Pulleyblank         		/t͡sʰawX/
    Li
    Rong         		/t͡sʰɑuX/
    Wang
    Li         		/t͡sʰɑuX/
    Bernard
    Karlgren         		/t͡sʰɑuX/
    Expected
    Mandarin
    Reflex         		cǎo
    Expected
    Cantonese
    Reflex         		cou2
    Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
    Character 草 草
    Reading # 1/2 2/2
    Modern
    Beijing
    (Pinyin)         		cǎo cǎo
    Middle
    Chinese         		‹ tshawX › ‹ tshawX ›
    Old
    Chinese         		/*[tsʰ]ˁuʔ/ /*[tsʰ]ˁuʔ/
    English grass, plants rough, coarse

    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 草
    Reading # 1/1
    No. 16547
    Phonetic
    component         		早
    Rime
    group         		幽
    Rime
    subdivision         		1
    Corresponding
    MC rime         		草
    Old
    Chinese         		/*sʰuːʔ/
    Notes 說文作艸
     
    草

    DefinitionsEdit

    草

    1. herbaceous plant; herb; weed; grass
      草地上有一頭牛在吃草。 [MSC, trad.]
      草地上有一头牛在吃草。 [MSC, simp.]
      Cǎodì shàng yǒu yī tóu niú zài chī cǎo. [Pinyin]
      There is one cow eating grass on the lawn.
    2. straw
      稻草  ―  dàocǎo  ―  rice straw
      草鞋  ―  cǎoxié  ―  straw sandals
    3. (Cantonese, slang) marijuana; cannabis; weed
      㨃草 [Cantonese]  ―  deoi2 cou2 [Jyutping]  ―  to smoke weed
    4. (dated) countryside; wilderness
      落草為寇／落草为寇  ―  luòcǎowéikòu  ―  to become a bandit in the countryside
    5. common; ordinary
      草金魚／草金鱼  ―  cǎojīnyú  ―  common goldfish
    6. (dialectal, chiefly of livestock or poultry) female
    7. draft; sketch
    8. careless; rough; sloppy
    9. to draft
      草擬／草拟  ―  cǎonǐ  ―  to draft; to draw up (a plan)
    10. (calligraphy) Short for 草書／草书 (cǎoshū, “cursive script (grass script)”).
      狂草  ―  kuángcǎo  ―  wild cursive
      1. cursive
    11. (chemistry) oxalic

    CompoundsEdit

    Derived terms from 草

    DescendantsEdit

    Sino-Xenic (草):
    • → Japanese: 草(そう) (sō)
    • → Korean: 초(草) (cho)
    • → Vietnamese: thảo (草)

    Others:

    • Vietnamese: tháu (“scrawling”)

    Etymology 2Edit

    For pronunciation and definitions of 草 – see 皂 (“black; acorn; etc.”).
    (This character, 草, is a variant form of 皂.)

    Etymology 3Edit

    PronunciationEdit

    DefinitionsEdit

    草

    1. (slang, euphemistic, Internet slang) Alternative form of 肏 (cào, “fuck”).

    Etymology 4Edit

    Orthographic borrowing from Japanese 草 (kusa, “LOL”). See the Japanese entry for more information.

    As an interjection, this term is easily confused with the native “fuck” sense above. To distinguish between the two senses, 中國語／中国语 (zhōngguóyǔ, “Chinese”) and 日本語／日本语 (rìběnyǔ, “Japanese”) are usually put in parentheses following the term to specify which sense is intended.

    PronunciationEdit

    DefinitionsEdit

    草

    1. (neologism, Internet slang) LOL
      草（中日雙語）／草（中日双语）  ―  cǎo (zhōngrì shuāngyǔ)  ―  fuck lmao
    2. (neologism, Internet slang) hilarious
      這也太草了吧。／这也太草了吧。  ―  Zhè yě tài cǎo le ba.  ―  Isn't this a bit too hilarious?

    JapaneseEdit

    KanjiEdit

    草

    (grade 1 “Kyōiku” kanji)

    ReadingsEdit

    CompoundsEdit

    Compounds

    Etymology 1Edit

    Kanji in this term
    草
    くさ
    Grade: 1
    kun’yomi

    From Old Japanese, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *kusa. Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.

    Possible derivation from onomatopoeic かさかさ (referring to the dry, rustling sound of grass).[1]

    The development of the fake, amateur senses is unclear.

    Alternative formsEdit

    PronunciationEdit

    NounEdit

    草(くさ) • (kusa) 

    1. grass
      草(くさ)を刈(か)る
      kusa o karu
      to cut grass
      Synonym: (in reference to a lawn) 芝生 (shibafu)
    2. a weed
    3. a herb
      Synonyms: ハーブ (hābu), (medicinal) 薬草 (yakusō), (cooking) 香草 (kōsō)
    4. a scout, a spy (from the way one would hide in the grass to observe enemy troops)
    5. (figurative, slang, rare) pubic hair

    PrefixEdit

    草(くさ) • (kusa-) 

    1. a fake, a mimic, not the real thing
      草(くさ)蜉蝣(かげろう)
      kusakagerō
      a lacewing fly (literally, “fake or mimic dragonfly”, from the visual resemblance)
    2. amateur, small-time
      草(くさ)野(や)球(きゅう)、草(くさ)競(けい)馬(ば)
      kusayakyū, kusakeiba
      amateur or pick-up baseball, small-time horse-racing

    Etymology 2Edit

    Kanji in this term
    草
    そう
    Grade: 1
    on’yomi

    /sau/ → /sɔː/ → /soː/

    From Middle Chinese 草 (MC t͡sʰɑuX).

    PronunciationEdit

    NounEdit

    草(そう) • (sō) ←さう (sau)?

    1. grass
    2. a draft, a rough copy
    3. cursive, calligraphy in a running hand
    4. something unofficial, an informal abbreviation or knock-off
    SynonymsEdit

    Etymology 3Edit

    Kanji in this term
    草
    くさ
    Grade: 1
    kun’yomi

    From the resemblance of multiple repetitions of w (“LOL”) to grass: wwwwwwwww.

    Possibly influenced by the term くすくす (kusukusu), an adverb indicating stifled laughter. (Can this(+) etymology be sourced?)

    PronunciationEdit

    NounEdit

    草(くさ) • (kusa) 

    1. (Internet slang) "grass", in reference to the expression w (“LOL”); LOLs

    PhraseEdit

    草(くさ) • (kusa) 

    1. Short for 草生える (kusa haeru): (Internet slang) … it's hilarious
      Synonyms: 草生える (kusa haeru), 笑える (waraeru)
      鯖(さば)落(お)ちてて草(くさ)
      saba ochitete kusa
      lol the server's down
      下手(へた)すぎて草(くさ)
      heta-sugite kusa
      hilariously shitty
      4日(よっか)しかないのは草(くさ)
      yokka shika nai no wa kusa
      only 4 days left haha
    Derived termsEdit

    Related termsEdit

    ReferencesEdit

    1. ^ 草／くさ - Gogen Yurai Jiten (in Japanese)
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
    3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 1998, NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 (NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK, →ISBN

    KoreanEdit

    HanjaEdit

    草 (eumhun 풀 초 (pul cho))

    1. Hanja form? of 초 (“grass”).

    VietnameseEdit

    Han characterEdit

    草: Hán Nôm readings: thảo, tháu, xáo

    1. grass
    2. straw
    3. thatch
    4. herbs

    ReferencesEdit

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