桂

桂 U+6842, 桂 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-6842 ← 桁 [U+6841] CJK Unified Ideographs 桃 → [U+6843]

Translingual

Han character

Stroke order

桂 (Kangxi radical 75, 木+6, 10 strokes, cangjie input 木土土 (DGG), four-corner 4491₄, composition ⿰木圭)

Derived characters

• 𠺺, 溎, 𥉯, 蓕, 𭵣

References

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 525, character 2
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 14755
• Dae Jaweon: page 913, character 5
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 2, page 1193, character 5
• Unihan data for U+6842

Chinese

simp. and trad.		桂

Wikipedia has articles on:

• 桂 (Cantonese)
• 桂 (Written Standard Chinese^?)

Glyph origin

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

	Old Chinese
街	*kreː, *kreː
鞋	*ɡreː, *ɡreː, *ɡreː
娾	*ŋreː, *ŋreːʔ
佳	*kreː
鮭	*ɡreː, *kʷeː, *kʰʷeː
涯	*ŋreː, *ŋre
崖	*ŋreː, *ŋre
啀	*ŋreː
厓	*ŋreː
捱	*ŋreː
睚	*ŋreːs
娃	*qreː
洼	*qreː, *qʷraː, *kʷeː
哇	*qreː, *qʷraː
胿	*ɡeː, *kʷeː
溎	*qeːns
觟	*ɡʷraːʔ
黊	*ɡʷraːʔ, *ɡʷreːs, *ɡʷeː
蘳	*ɡʷraːʔ, *qʰʷe
蛙	*qʷraː, *qʷreː
窪	*qʷraː
卦	*kʷreːs
挂	*kʷreːs
掛	*kʷreːs
詿	*kʷreːs, *ɡʷreːs
罣	*kʷreːs, *ɡʷreːs, *kʷeːs
絓	*kʰʷreː, *ɡʷreːs
鼃	*ɢʷreː, *qʷreː
圭	*kʷeː
珪	*kʷeː
邽	*kʷeː
閨	*kʷeː
袿	*kʷeː
窐	*kʷeː, *ɡʷeː
茥	*kʷeː, *kʰʷeː
桂	*kʷeːs
筀	*kʷeːs
奎	*kʰʷeː
刲	*kʰʷeː
蝰	*kʰʷeː
楏	*kʰʷeː
睳	*qʰʷeː
畦	*ɡʷeː
眭	*ɡʷeː, *sqʰʷe, *qʰʷe, *qʰʷi
烓	*qʷeː, *kʰʷeːŋʔ
跬	*kʰʷeʔ
恚	*qʷes
硅	*qʰʷreɡ

Phono-semantic compound (形聲 / 形声, OC *kʷeːs): semantic 木 + phonetic 圭 (OC *kʷeː).

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): guì (gui⁴)

  (Zhuyin): ㄍㄨㄟˋ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): gwai³
• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): kui

  (Hailu, HRS): gui^ˇ

  (Meixian, Guangdong): gui⁴

• Eastern Min (BUC): gié
• Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing): ge⁴
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): kùi

  (Teochew, Peng'im): gui³

• Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): ⁵kue

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: guì
    • Zhuyin: ㄍㄨㄟˋ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: guèi
    • Wade–Giles: kuei⁴
    • Yale: gwèi
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: guey
    • Palladius: гуй (guj)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ku̯eɪ̯⁵¹/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
    • Jyutping: gwai³
    • Yale: gwai
    • Cantonese Pinyin: gwai³
    • Guangdong Romanization: guei³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kʷɐi̯³³/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: kui
    • Hakka Romanization System: gui
    • Hagfa Pinyim: gui⁴
    • Sinological IPA: /ku̯i⁵⁵/
  • (Hailu, incl. Zhudong)
    • Hakka Romanization System: gui^ˇ
    • Sinological IPA: /kui¹¹/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: gui⁴
    • Sinological IPA: /kuɪ⁵³/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: gié
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kiɛ²¹³/
• Puxian Min
  • (Putian, Jiangkou, Nanri, Xianyou, Youyang, Fengting)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: ge⁴
    • Báⁿ-uā-ci̍: ga̤̍
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ke⁴²/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kùi
    • Tâi-lô: kuì
    • Phofsit Daibuun: kuix
    • IPA (Xiamen): /kui²¹/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /kui⁴¹/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /kui²¹/
    • IPA (Taipei): /kui¹¹/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /kui²¹/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: gui³
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: kùi
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kui²¹³/
• Wu
  • (Northern: Shanghai)
    • Wugniu: ⁵kue
    • MiniDict: kue^去
    • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ²kue
    • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /kue³⁴/

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• Dialectal data

Variety	Location	edit 桂
Mandarin	Beijing	/kuei⁵¹/
	Harbin	/kuei⁵³/
	Tianjin	/kuei⁵³/
	Jinan	/kuei²¹/
	Qingdao	/kue⁴²/
	Zhengzhou	/kuei³¹²/
	Xi'an	/kuei⁴⁴/
	Xining	/kuɨ²¹³/
	Yinchuan	/kuei¹³/
	Lanzhou	/kuei¹³/
	Ürümqi	/kuei²¹³/
	Wuhan	/kuei³⁵/
	Chengdu	/kuei¹³/
	Guiyang	/kuei²¹³/
	Kunming	/kuei²¹²/
	Nanjing	/kuəi⁴⁴/
	Hefei	/kue⁵³/
Jin	Taiyuan	/kuei⁴⁵/
	Pingyao	/kuei³⁵/
	Hohhot	/kuei⁵⁵/
Wu	Shanghai	/kue³⁵/
	Suzhou	/kue̞⁵¹³/
	Hangzhou	/kui⁴⁴⁵/
	Wenzhou	/t͡ɕy⁴²/
Hui	Shexian	/kue³²⁴/
	Tunxi	/t͡ɕye⁴²/
Xiang	Changsha	/kuei⁵⁵/
	Xiangtan	/kuəi⁵⁵/
Gan	Nanchang	/kui⁴⁵/
Hakka	Meixian	/kui⁵³/
	Taoyuan	/kui⁵⁵/
Cantonese	Guangzhou	/kwɐi³³/
	Nanning	/kʷɐi³³/
	Hong Kong	/kwɐi³³/
Min	Xiamen (Hokkien)	/kui²¹/
	Fuzhou (Eastern Min)	/kiɛ²¹²/
	Jian'ou (Northern Min)	/ky³³/
	Shantou (Teochew)	/kui²¹³/
	Haikou (Hainanese)	/kui³⁵/

---

• Middle Chinese: kwejH

Rime
Character	桂
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	見 (28)
Final (韻)	齊 (40)
Tone (調)	Departing (H)
Openness (開合)	Closed
Division (等)	IV
Fanqie	古惠切
Baxter	kwejH
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/kweiH/
Pan Wuyun	/kʷeiH/
Shao Rongfen	/kuɛiH/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/kwɛjH/
Li Rong	/kueiH/
Wang Li	/kiweiH/
Bernhard Karlgren	/kiweiH/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	guì
Expected Cantonese Reflex	gwai3

• Old Chinese

  (Zhengzhang): /*kʷeːs/

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	桂
Reading #	1/1
No.	4579
Phonetic component	圭
Rime group	支
Rime subdivision	0
Corresponding MC rime	桂
Old Chinese	/*kʷeːs/

Definitions

桂

1. osmanthus; sweet osmanthus
2. cassia; Chinese cinnamon

   • 蒙舍蠻以椒、薑、桂和烹而飲之。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     蒙舍蛮以椒、姜、桂和烹而饮之。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Tang Dynasty, Fan Chuo, Manshu, chapter 7, part 7

     Méngshè Mán yǐ jiāo, jiāng, guì hé pēng ér yǐn zhī. [Pinyin]

     The Mengshe Barbarians use pepper, ginger, and cinnamon to boil as a drink.

3. true cinnamon; Saigon cinnamon; Indonesian cinnamon
4. laurel; bay laurel
5. of or relating to Guilin, Guangxi, or the region of the Gui River
6. a surname

Compounds

• 丹桂 (dānguì)
• 吳剛伐桂 / 吴刚伐桂
• 折桂 (zhéguì)
• 折桂攀蟾
• 攀仙桂
• 攀桂
• 攀桂客
• 攀蟾折桂
• 月中折桂
• 月中桂
• 月桂 (yuèguì)
• 月桂冠 (yuèguìguān)
• 月桂樹 / 月桂树 (yuèguìshù)
• 木桂
• 杭桂 (Hángguì)
• 桂冠 (guìguān)
• 桂冠詩人 / 桂冠诗人
• 桂劇 / 桂剧 (guìjù)
• 桂圓 / 桂圆 (guìyuán)
• 桂圓肉 / 桂圆肉 (guìyuánròu)
• 桂堂
• 桂子
• 桂子蘭孫 / 桂子兰孙
• 桂子飄香 / 桂子飘香
• 桂宮 / 桂宫
• 桂宮柏寢 / 桂宫柏寝
• 桂山 (Guìshān)
• 桂戲 / 桂戏
• 桂旗
• 桂月 (guìyuè)
• 桂林 (Guìlín)
• 桂枝 (guìzhī)
• 桂林一枝
• 桂棟 / 桂栋
• 桂棹
• 桂樹 / 桂树
• 桂水
• 桂江
• 桂海
• 桂漿 / 桂浆
• 桂父
• 桂王
• 桂皮 (guìpí)
• 桂皮酸
• 桂秋
• 桂窟
• 桂竹 (guìzhú)
• 桂竹香
• 桂籍
• 桂舟
• 桂花 (guìhuā)
• 桂花糕
• 桂花茶 (guìhuā chá)
• 桂花酒 (guìhuājiǔ)
• 桂花醬 / 桂花酱
• 桂蠹
• 桂輪 / 桂轮
• 桂酒
• 桂陽 / 桂阳 (Guìyáng)
• 桂馥蘭芳 / 桂馥兰芳
• 桂魄 (guìpò)
• 桂魚 / 桂鱼 (guìyú)
• 炊桂
• 爨桂炊玉
• 米珠薪桂
• 肉桂 (ròuguì)
• 菌桂
• 薑桂 / 姜桂
• 薪桂米珠
• 薑桂老辣 / 姜桂老辣 (jiāngguìlǎolà)
• 藏桂 (Cángguì)
• 蘭桂 / 兰桂
• 蘭桂騰芳 / 兰桂腾芳
• 蘭桂齊芳 / 兰桂齐芳
• 蘭薰桂馥 / 兰薰桂馥
• 蟾宮折桂 / 蟾宫折桂 (chángōngzhéguì)
• 蟾桂
• 銀桂 / 银桂
• 食玉炊桂

Etymology 2

For pronunciation and definitions of 桂 – see 鱖 (“mandarin fish; Chinese perch”). (This character is the second-round simplified form of 鱖).

Notes: Simplified Chinese is mainly used in Mainland China, Malaysia, and Singapore. Traditional Chinese is mainly used in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

References

• “桂”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎, 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–
• 李如龙 [Li, Ru-long]; 刘福铸 [Liu, Fu-zhu]; 吴华英 [Wu, Hua-ying]; 黄国城 [Huang, Guo-cheng] (2019), “桂”, in 莆仙方言调查报告 [Investigation Report on Puxian Dialect] (overall work in Mandarin and Puxian Min), Xiamen University Press, →ISBN, page 157.