真
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Translingual
| Stroke order | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Traditional | 真 |
|---|---|
| Simplified | 真 |
| Japanese | 真 |
| Korean | 眞 |
Alternative forms
In simplified and traditional Chinese, the 目 component is connected to the horizontal line below it (as seen in the Kangxi dictionary) whereas, in Japanese and Korean, 目 is separate from that line.
Han character
真 (Kangxi radical 109, 目+5, 10 strokes, cangjie input 十月一金 (JBMC), four-corner 40801, composition ⿱十具)
Usage notes
The Kangxi dictionary considers 真 as an unorthodox form (俗字) of 眞. However, the traditional Kangxi form 眞 with 匕 on top is rarely used nowadays. In modern times, 真 is considered the orthodox form in all regions except South Korea.
Derived characters
Related characters
- 眞 (Original form of 真)
Further reading
- KangXi: page 805, character 1
- Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 23236
- Dae Jaweon: page 1221, character 1
- Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 249, character 7
- Unihan data for U+771F
- Unihan data for U+2F946
- Unihan data for U+2F947
Chinese
| trad. | 真/眞 | |
|---|---|---|
| simp. | 真 | |
| 2nd round simp. | 𰅴 | |
| alternative forms | ||
Glyph origin
| Historical forms of the character 真 |
|---|
| Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han) |
| Small seal script |
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| Old Chinese | |
|---|---|
| 寘 | *tjels |
| 䡩 | *kʰriːn |
| 黰 | *ʔriːn, *ʔljinʔ |
| 顛 | *tiːn, *tʰiːns |
| 滇 | *tiːn, *tʰiːns, *diːn |
| 齻 | *tiːn |
| 槙 | *tiːn, *tjinʔ |
| 瘨 | *tiːn |
| 傎 | *tiːn |
| 蹎 | *tiːn |
| 厧 | *tiːn |
| 巔 | *tiːn |
| 癲 | *tiːn |
| 瑱 | *tʰiːns, *tins |
| 填 | *diːn, *diːns, *tin, *tins |
| 窴 | *diːn, *diːns |
| 闐 | *diːn, *diːns |
| 磌 | *diːn, *tjin |
| 鷏 | *diːn |
| 嗔 | *diːn, *tʰjin |
| 搷 | *diːn |
| 鎮 | *tin, *tins |
| 縝 | *tʰin, *ʔljinʔ, *tʰjin |
| 真 | *ʔljin |
| 禛 | *tjin |
| 稹 | *ʔljin, *ʔljinʔ |
| 蒖 | *tjin |
| 鬒 | *ʔljinʔ |
| 瞋 | *tʰjin |
| 謓 | *tʰjin |
| 慎 | *djins |
Ideogrammic compound (會意) : 匕 (“spoon, fork”) + 鼎 (“ancient food vessel”) – using a fork to fetch food from a cauldron. Alternatively, an ancient variant of 貞 (OC *teŋ, “divination”).
Etymology
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan; cognate with Tibetan བདེན (bden, “true; truth”). Possibly connected with 貞 (OC *teŋ) (Schuessler, 2007).
Pronunciation
Definitions
真
Synonyms
Compounds
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Further reading
- “Entry #6396”, in 臺灣閩南語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwan Minnan] (in Chinese and Min Nan), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2011.
Japanese
| 真 | |
| 眞 |
Readings
Etymology 1
| Kanji in this term |
|---|
| 真 |
| しん Grade: 3 |
| on’yomi |
| Alternative spelling |
|---|
| 眞 (kyūjitai) |
From Middle Chinese 真 (MC t͡ɕiɪn).
Idioms
- 真に迫る (shin ni semaru)
Affix
真 • (shin)
Derived terms
- 真意 (shin'i)
- 真意義 (shin'igi)
- 真因 (shin'in)
- 真打 (shin'uchi)
- 真影 (shin'ei)
- 真円 (shin'en)
- 真価 (shinka)
- 真書き (shinkaki)
- 真核細胞 (shinkakusaibō)
- 真贋 (shingan)
- 真偽 (shingi)
- 真義 (shingi)
- 真菌 (shinkin)
- 真紅 (shinku)
- 真空 (shinkū)
- 真剣 (shinken)
- 真箇 (shinko), 真個 (shinko)
- 真骨頂 (shinkotchō)
- 真言 (shingon)
- 真摯 (shinshi)
- 真書 (shinsho)
- 真症 (shinshō)
- 真実 (shinjitsu)
- 真珠 (shinju)
- 真薯 (shinjo)
- 真情 (shinjō)
- 真人 (shinjin)
- 真髄 (shinzui)
- 真性 (shinsei)
- 真正 (shinsei)
- 真跡 (shinseki), 真蹟 (shinseki), 真迹 (shinseki)
- 真相 (shinsō)
- 真率 (shinsotsu)
- 真諦 (shintai)
- 真鍮 (shinchū)
- 真直 (shinchoku)
- 真諦 (shintei)
- 真如 (shinnyo)
- 真犯人 (shinhannin)
- 真美 (shinbi)
- 真否 (shinpi)
- 真皮 (shinpi)
- 真筆 (shinpitsu)
- 真物 (shinbutsu)
- 真部分集合 (shinbubunshūgō)
- 真分数 (shinbunsū)
- 真味 (shinmi)
- 真勇 (shin'yū)
- 真理 (shinri)
- 写真 (shashin)
- 純真 (junshin)
- 正真 (shōshin)
- 浄土真宗 (Jōdo Shinshū)
- 天真 (tenshin)
- 迫真 (hakushin)
Etymology 2
| Kanji in this term |
|---|
| 真 |
| ま Grade: 3 |
| kun’yomi |
| Alternative spelling |
|---|
| 眞 (kyūjitai) |
| For pronunciation and definitions of 真 – see the following entry. | ||
| ||
| (This term, 真, is an alternative spelling of the above term.) |
Etymology 3
| Kanji in this term |
|---|
| 真 |
| まこと Grade: 3 |
| kun’yomi |
| Alternative spellings |
|---|
| 眞 (kyūjitai) 実 誠 |
Compound of 真 (ma-, “true”, see above) + 事, 言 (koto, “thing, word”).[1]
Derived terms
- 真に (makoto ni)
Interjection
真 • (makoto)
- used for recalling information previously forgotten or sudden change of subjects: that's right
Derived terms
- 真に (makoto ni)
Etymology 4
| Kanji in this term |
|---|
| 真 |
| Grade: 3 |
| nanori |
| Alternative spelling |
|---|
| 眞 (kyūjitai) |
From classical adjective 厚し (atsushi), modern 厚い (atsui, “thick, heavy; kind, warm”).
Etymology 5
| Kanji in this term |
|---|
| 真 |
| Grade: 3 |
| nanori |
| Alternative spelling |
|---|
| 眞 (kyūjitai) |
From classical adjective 正し (tadashi), modern 正しい (tadashii, “correct, right, true”).


