Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective

能

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

Remove ads
See also: 態
能 U+80FD, 能
CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-80FD
← 胼
[U+80FC] 		CJK Unified Ideographs 胾 →
[U+80FE]

Translingual

More information Stroke order ...
More information Stroke order ...

Han character

能 (Kangxi radical 130, 肉+6, 10 strokes, cangjie input 戈月心心 (IBPP), four-corner 21211, composition ⿰䏍𫧇)

Derived characters

Additional Derived Characters
  • 𠹌, 𪣾, 𱙦, 𢟒, 𤠗, 𬂌, 𤌶, 𭽳, 𦎵, 𰳔, 𨃳, 𫆽, 𪏛
  • 𫿌, 𭏙, 𡮙, 𱼑, 𣉘, 𥀍, 𥉃, 𦑴, 𭏿, 𩙸
  • 𫠹, 𮐝, 𮊓, 𥰘, 𦋼, 𬚆, 𧟽, 𤹍, 𨶙, 𧴞

References

  • Kangxi Dictionary: page 981, character 16
  • Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 29454
  • Dae Jaweon: page 1433, character 11
  • Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 3, page 2074, character 1
  • Unihan data for U+80FD
Remove ads

Chinese

More information trad., simp. # ...

Glyph origin

More information Historical forms of the character 能, Shang ...
Characters in the same phonetic series (能) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 
More information Old Chinese ...

Pictogram (象形): a bear. Compare 熊 (OC *ɢʷlɯm, “bear”). In the character, two paws are visible as a pair of 匕 and the face with the open mouth is stylized as 月.

Etymology

"bear-like animal"
Apparently an areal word of Austroasiatic origin (Schuessler, 2007; Zhang, 2019). Compare Kharia [script needed] (bɔnɔi), Santali [script needed] (bana, “Indian black bear”) & Lepcha ᰠᰶᰍ (să-na, “bear”), a loanword from Santali.
“be able to; can; ability”
Shijing rhymes point to Old Chinese *nə, but the forms with *-ŋ are also archaic (perhaps ancient dialectal variation?).
Possibly Proto-Sino-Tibetan (which STEDT tentatively reconstructs as *m-nyaŋ (“can, be able”)): compare Tibetan ནུས (nus, “to be able to; capable; to withstand; capacity; strength; force; power; function; energy”), Burmese နိုင် (nuing, “can, be able to, may; master; win; prevail”). Schuessler (2007) also derives 態 (OC *n̥ʰɯːs, “apparition, bearing, manner”) from this; see also 忍 (OC *njɯnʔ, “to suffer, endure”).
Compare the old pre-Sino–Vietnamese loanword nổi (“be able to; capable”).

Pronunciation 1

Note: nêng5 - Jieyang.
  • Dialectal data
More information Variety, Location ...
More information Rime, Character ...
More information Character, Reading # ...
More information Zhengzhang system (2003), Character ...

Definitions

能

  1. (obsolete) a kind of bear
  2. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese, Chinese mythology) a mythological bear-like animal, with deer-like legs.
  3. able; capable
  4. can; to be able to; to be capable of; to be allowed to
    我能跑得很快。  ―  Wǒ néng pǎo de hěn kuài.  ―  I can run fast.
    有人能幫我嗎？／有人能帮我吗？  ―  Yǒu rén néng bāng wǒ ma?  ―  Is there anybody who can help me?
    漲潮時你不能在這個海灘散步。 [MSC, trad.]
    涨潮时你不能在这个海滩散步。 [MSC, simp.]
    Zhàngcháo shí nǐ bù néng zài zhège hǎitān sànbù. [Pinyin]
    You can't walk along this beach at high tide.
    公共場所不能吸煙。 [MSC, trad.]
    公共场所不能吸烟。 [MSC, simp.]
    Gōnggòngchǎngsuǒ bùnéng xīyān. [Pinyin]
    You’re not allowed to smoke in public.
  5. to successfully do something (negate with 沒／没 (méi))
    你能進入這所大學讀書，全靠你父母的關係。 [MSC, trad.]
    你能进入这所大学读书，全靠你父母的关系。 [MSC, simp.]
    Nǐ néng jìnrù zhè suǒ dàxué dúshū, quán kào nǐ fùmǔ de guānxì. [Pinyin]
    You were able to study at this university all because of your parents.
    他沒能趕上末班車。 [MSC, trad.]
    他没能赶上末班车。 [MSC, simp.]
    Tā méi néng gǎnshàng mòbānchē. [Pinyin]
    He didn't manage to catch the last train.
  6. (dialectal) cocky
    看把你能的。  ―  Kàn bǎ nǐ néng de.  ―  (please add an English translation of this usage example)
  7. may; could
    能不能請你幫個忙？ [MSC, trad.]
    能不能请你帮个忙？ [MSC, simp.]
    Néng bù néng qǐng nǐ bāng ge máng? [Pinyin]
    May I ask a favour of you?
    你能再說一遍嗎？ [MSC, trad.]
    你能再说一遍吗？ [MSC, simp.]
    Nǐ néng zài shuō yībiàn ma? [Pinyin]
    Could you repeat that?
  8. rather; would rather
  9. ability; capability
    能力  ―  nénglì  ―  capability, ability
    無能／无能  ―  wúnéng  ―  incompetent
  10. talent; talented person
    才能  ―  cáinéng  ―  talent, ability
  11. energy; power
    太陽能／太阳能  ―  tàiyángnéng  ―  solar energy
    水能  ―  shuǐnéng  ―  hydroelectric power
    動能／动能  ―  dòngnéng  ―  kinetic energy
  12. (Sujiahu Wu, Wenzhounese, Jinhua and Quzhou Wu) way; manner
    搿能 [Shanghainese]  ―  8geq-nen [Wugniu]  ―  like this (lit. in this way)
    好好能走 [Shanghainese]  ―  5hau-hau-nen-tseu [Wugniu]  ―  to walk properly
    慢慢能吃 [Wenzhounese]  ―  ma6-ma6-nan2-chiai7 [Wugniu]  ―  to eat slowly
  13. a surname

Synonyms

Dialectal synonyms of 能 (“can”) [map]
More information Variety, Location ...

Compounds

Pronunciation 2

More information Rime, Character ...
More information Zhengzhang system (2003), Character ...

Definitions

能

  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) alternative form of 耐 (“to bear; to withstand”)
  2. a surname

Pronunciation 3

Definitions

能

  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) alternative form of 台 (“name of a Chinese constellation”)
    三能  ―  sāntái  ―  Santai (Chinese constellation)

Pronunciation 4

Definitions

能

  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) alternative form of 態 / 态 (tài, “bearing; apparition; form; shape; status; position”)

Pronunciation 5

More information Rime, Character ...
More information Character, Reading # ...
More information Zhengzhang system (2003), Character ...

Definitions

能

  1. (obsolete) mythical three-legged soft-shelled turtle

Compounds

  • 三足能
  • 黃能 / 黄能

Pronunciation 6

Definitions

能

  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) only used in 能始 (tāishǐ, “origin; root cause”)

Pronunciation 7

Definitions

能

  1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) alternative form of 熊 (xióng, “bear”)

References

Remove ads

Japanese

Kanji

能

(Fifth grade kyōiku kanji)

  1. ability
  2. talent
  3. skill
  4. capacity

Readings

Compounds

Pronunciation

Noun

 能 on Japanese Wikipedia
 Noh on Wikipedia

能(のう) • (nō) 

  1. Noh, a form of classical Japanese musical drama.
  2. ability, capacity, aptitude.
  3. effect, use.
    古(ふる)い議(ぎ)論(ろん)を繰(く)り返(かえ)しても能(のう)はないのだよ。
    Furui giron o kurikaeshite mo nō wa nai no da yo.
    Repeating old arguments isn't of any use / won't have any effect.

Synonyms

Korean

Etymology 1

From Middle Chinese 能 (MC nong).

Historical readings

Pronunciation

Hanja

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

能 (eumhun 능할 능 (neunghal neung))

  1. hanja form? of 능 (“ability”)

Compounds

Etymology 2

Related to Middle Chinese 耐 (MC nojH).

Hanja

能 (eumhun 견딜 내 (gyeondil nae))

  1. (literary Chinese) alternative form of 耐 (“hanja form? of 내 (“endure; withstand”)”)

References

  • 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典.
Remove ads

Old Japanese

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 能 (MC nong).

Phonogram

能 (no2)

  1. Denotes phonographic syllable no2.
    Synonym: 乃

Further reading

Vietnamese

Han character

能: Hán Nôm readings: năng, hay, nấng, năn, nằng, nưng

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

Wikiwand - on

Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.

Remove ads
Remove ads