用

Han character

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Radical 101 用

用 (Kangxi radical 101, 用+0, 5 strokes, cangjie input 月手 (BQ), four-corner 7722₀, composition ⿵⺆𰀁 or ⿻丨月)

1. Kangxi radical #101, ⽤.

Glyph origin

More information Historical forms of the character 用, Shang ...

Historical forms of the character 用
Shang		Western Zhou		Spring and Autumn	Warring States			Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)		Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Bronze inscriptions	Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Bronze inscriptions	Chu slip and silk script	Qin slip script	Ancient script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

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Pictogram (象形) : a water bucket. Compare 桶. Similar but unrelated to 甬, which represents a bronze bell, and 角, which represents a horn. Unrelated to the bottom part of 備, which represents a quiver. Eventually, unrelated to 甫, in which it is the stylization of 田.

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *z(j)um ~ *zuŋ, provisionally set up by STEDT. Cognates to 傭 (OC loŋ) and 庸 (OC loŋ), outside Sinitic, Southern Bai zv³¹ (“to use”) Burmese သုံး (sum:, “to use”), Ersu zi⁵⁵ (“to use”), Nuosu ꌬ (ssi, “to use”), Pa'o Karen [script needed] (sūŋ, “to use”).

Sun (1999) and Schuessler (2007) consider this word a cognate to Tibetan ལོངས (longs, “use”)

Pronunciation

Definitions

用

1. to use; to employ; to operate

   你會不會用電腦？ [MSC, trad.]
   你会不会用电脑？ [MSC, simp.]

   Nǐ huì bù huì yòng diànnǎo? [Pinyin]

   Can you use a computer?

   我用海綿來吸水。 [MSC, trad.]
   我用海绵来吸水。 [MSC, simp.]

   Wǒ yòng hǎimián lái xī shuǐ. [Pinyin]

   I used a sponge to draw the water.

2. use; utility; usefulness

   有用  ―  yǒuyòng  ―  useful

   沒用／没用  ―  méiyòng  ―  useless

3. (honorific) to eat; to drink

   是喝茶的時間啦，請用一杯茶吧！ [MSC, trad.]
   是喝茶的时间啦，请用一杯茶吧！ [MSC, simp.]

   Shì hē chá de shíjiān la, qǐng yòng yī bēi chá ba! [Pinyin]

   It is tea time. Please have a cup of tea!

4. expenses; outlay

   費用／费用  ―  fèiyòng  ―  cost, expense

   用度  ―  yòngdù  ―  expense

   家用  ―  jiāyòng  ―  family expenses

5. with; by; using

   用叉子吃東西／用叉子吃东西  ―  yòng chāzi chī dōngxi  ―  to eat with a fork

   我用筷子吃飯。／我用筷子吃饭。  ―  Wǒ yòng kuàizǐ chīfàn.  ―  I eat food with chopsticks.

   我用濕抹布擦桌子。 [MSC, trad.]
   我用湿抹布擦桌子。 [MSC, simp.]

   Wǒ yòng shī mǒbù cā zhuōzǐ. [Pinyin]

   I wash the table with a wet cloth.

   我老闆用姓稱呼我。 [MSC, trad.]
   我老板用姓称呼我。 [MSC, simp.]

   Wǒ lǎobǎn yòng xìng chēnghū wǒ. [Pinyin]

   My boss calls me by my last name.

6. (chiefly used in the negative or interrogative) to need

   不用急，慢慢來。 [MSC, trad.]
   不用急，慢慢来。 [MSC, simp.]

   Bùyòng jí, mànmān lái. [Pinyin]

   No need to hurry. Please take it easy.

7. (literary) therefore
8. (obsolete) because of; due to; because

   • 子曰：「伯夷叔齊，不念舊惡，怨是用希。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     子曰：「伯夷叔齐，不念旧恶，怨是用希。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Zǐyuē: “Bóyí Shūqí, bùniànjiù'è, yuàn shìyòng xī.” [Pinyin]

     The Master said, "Bo Yi and Shu Qi did not keep the former wickednesses of men in mind, and hence (i.e. "because of this") the resentments directed towards them were few."

9. a surname

Compounds

Descendants

Others:

• → Iu Mien: longc
• → Vietnamese: dùng
• → Zhuang: yungh

References

• “用”, 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–
• Dictionary of Chinese Character Variants (教育部異體字字典), A02627

Kanji

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

Noun

用(よう) • (yō) 

1. use (noun)

   事(じ)業(ぎょう)の用(よう)に供(きょう)している資(し)産(さん)

   jigyō no yō ni kyō shite iru shisan

   assets provided for business use

2. a task, business, an errand

   今(こん)晩(ばん)用(よう)があるから出(で)かける。

   Konban yō ga aru kara dekakeru.

   I'll be out this evening because I have an errand.

Suffix

用(よう) • (-yō) 

1. for the use of, for the purpose of, in case of

   家(か)庭(てい)用(よう)石(せっ)鹸(けん)、散(さん)歩(ぽ)用(よう)のブーツ、非常(ひじょう)用(よう)

   kateiyō sekken, sanpoyō no būtsu, hijōyō

   soap for household use, boots for [the purpose of] walking, in case of emergency

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 用 (MC yowngH). Recorded as Middle Korean 용 (yong) (Yale: yong) in Sinjeung Yuhap (新增類合 / 신증유합), 1576.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [jo(ː)ŋ]
• Phonetic hangul: [용(ː)]
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Hanja

Korean Wikisource has texts containing the hanja:

用

Wikisource 用 (eumhun 쓸 용 (sseul yong))

1. hanja form^? of 용 (“use”)

References

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

Han character

用: Hán Nôm readings: dụng, dùng, giùm, rùng, dộng, đụng, giùng, rụng, vùng

1. to use
2. to eat or drink