奈

See also: 柰

奈	U+5948, 奈 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-5948

← 奇
[U+5947]

CJK Unified Ideographs

奉 →
[U+5949]

奈	U+F90C, 奈 CJK COMPATIBILITY IDEOGRAPH-F90C

← 喇
[U+F90B]

CJK Compatibility Ideographs

懶 →
[U+F90D]

Translingual

Han character

奈 (Kangxi radical 37, 大+5, 8 strokes, cangjie input 大一一火 (KMMF), four-corner 4090₁, composition ⿱大示)

Derived characters

捺

Descendants

な
ナ

References

KangXi: page 251, character 1
Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 5893
Dae Jaweon: page 511, character 1
Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 532, character 2
Unihan data for U+5948
Unihan data for U+F90C

Chinese

trad.		奈
simp. ^#		奈
alternative forms		柰

Glyph origin

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

	Old Chinese
奈	naːls, naːds
柰	*naːds
渿	*naːds
捺	*naːd

A variant of 柰.

Etymology

“how; why”: Possibly a contraction of 若 (OC *nak) and 之 (OC *tə), as in 若之何 (Pulleyblank, 1995, p. 34).
“nano-”: Borrowed from English nano-.

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): nài (nai⁴)
(Zhuyin): ㄋㄞˋ
Cantonese
(Guangzhou, Jyutping): noi⁶
(Taishan, Wiktionary): noi⁵
Hakka (Sixian, PFS): nai
Min Dong (BUC): nâi
Min Nan
(Hokkien, POJ): tā / ta / tāi / nāi
(Teochew, Peng'im): nai⁶

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: nài
  - Zhuyin: ㄋㄞˋ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: nài
  - Wade–Giles: nai⁴
  - Yale: nài
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: nay
  - Palladius: най (naj)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /naɪ̯⁵¹/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou)⁺
  - Jyutping: noi⁶
  - Yale: noih
  - Cantonese Pinyin: noi⁶
  - Guangdong Romanization: noi⁶
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /nɔːi̯²²/
- (Taishanese, Taicheng)
  - Wiktionary: noi⁵
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ⁿdᵘɔi³²/
Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: nai
  - Hakka Romanization System: nai
  - Hagfa Pinyim: nai⁴
  - Sinological IPA: /nai̯⁵⁵/
Min Dong
- (Fuzhou)
  - Bàng-uâ-cê: nâi
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /nˡɑi²⁴²/
Min Nan
- (Hokkien: Quanzhou, variant in Taiwan, Xiamen)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tā
  - Tâi-lô: tā
  - Phofsit Daibuun: da
  - IPA (Xiamen): /ta²²/
  - IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /ta³³/
  - IPA (Quanzhou): /ta⁴¹/
- (Hokkien: General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ta
  - Tâi-lô: ta
  - Phofsit Daibuun: daf
  - IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /ta⁴⁴/
- (Hokkien: Zhangzhou)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tāi
  - Tâi-lô: tāi
  - Phofsit Daibuun: dai
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /tai²²/
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: nāi
  - Tâi-lô: nāi
  - Phofsit Daibuun: nai
  - IPA (Quanzhou): /nãi⁴¹/
  - IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /nãi³³/
  - IPA (Xiamen, Zhangzhou): /nãi²²/

Note:

ta/tai/tā - vernacular (limited, e.g. 無奈何);
nāi - literary.

- (Teochew)
  - Peng'im: nai⁶
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: năi
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /nai³⁵/

Middle Chinese: /nɑi^H/, /nɑ^H/

Rime
Character	奈	奈
Reading #	1/2	2/2
Initial (聲)	泥 (8)	泥 (8)
Final (韻)	泰 (25)	歌 (94)
Tone (調)	Departing (H)	Departing (H)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	I	I
Fanqie	奴帶切	奴箇切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/nɑi^H/	/nɑ^H/
Pan Wuyun	/nɑi^H/	/nɑ^H/
Shao Rongfen	/nɑi^H/	/nɑ^H/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/naj^H/	/na^H/
Li Rong	/nɑi^H/	/nɑ^H/
Wang Li	/nɑi^H/	/nɑ^H/
Bernard Karlgren	/nɑi^H/	/nɑ^H/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	nài	nuò
Expected Cantonese Reflex	naai⁶	no⁶

Old Chinese
(Baxter–Sagart): /*nˤa[t]-s/
(Zhengzhang): /*naːls/, /*naːds/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	奈
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	nài
Middle Chinese	‹ naj^H ›
Old Chinese	/*nˁa[t]-s/
English	cope with
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	奈	奈
Reading #	1/2	2/2
No.	9349	9350
Phonetic component	奈	奈
Rime group	歌	祭
Rime subdivision	1	1
Corresponding MC rime	奈	柰
Old Chinese	/*naːls/	/*naːds/

Definitions

奈

how; why (used in rhetorical questions)
to bear; to stand; to endure
(Taiwan) nano- (SI unit prefix)
Synonym: 納／纳 (nà) (Mainland China)

Compounds

不奈
不奈何
可奈
叵奈
基奈
奈上祝下
奈何 (nàihé)
奈向
奈守
奈曼
奈洛比 (Nàiluòbǐ)
奈秒
奈米 (nàimǐ)
奈良 (Nàiliáng)
如之奈何 (rú zhī nàihé)
尀奈
山奈
怎奈

末奈何
莫可奈何
西奈 (Xīnài)
西奈山
奈升
不奈煩／不奈烦
不寧奈／不宁奈
奈何橋／奈何桥 (nàihéqiáo)
奈及利亞／奈及利亚 (Nàijílìyà)
奈煩／奈烦
奈良時代／奈良时代
寧奈／宁奈
山奈鉀／山奈钾
康奈爾／康奈尔
康奈爾大學／康奈尔大学
欽奈／钦奈 (Qīnnài)
沒及奈何／没及奈何
沒奈何／没奈何 (mònàihé)

沒極奈何／没极奈何
沒計奈何／没计奈何
澀奈／涩奈
無可奈何／无可奈何 (wúkěnàihé)
無奈／无奈 (wúnài)
無奈我何／无奈我何
無如奈何／无如奈何
無計奈何／无计奈何
爭奈／争奈
神奈川縣／神奈川县
萬般無奈／万般无奈
葛林奈爾／葛林奈尔
葛林奈爾大學／葛林奈尔大学
蘇爾奈／苏尔奈 (sū'ěrnài)
西奈半島／西奈半岛 (Xīnài Bàndǎo)
西奈協定／西奈协定
頗奈／颇奈
香奈兒／香奈儿

References

“奈”, 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–

Japanese

Kanji

奈

(grade 4 “Kyōiku” kanji)

Abbreviation of 奈良: the city of Nara
what
(obsolete) apple tree

Readings

Go-on: な (na, Jōyō); ない (nai)
Kan-on: だ (da); だい (dai)
Kun: いかん (ikan, 奈); いかんせん (ikansen, 奈); いかんぞ (ikanzo, 奈); からなし (karanashi, 奈)
Nanori: なに (nani); なん (nan)

Etymology 1

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Alternative forms

柰

Pronunciation

Kun’yomi

IPA^(key): [ka̠ɾa̠na̠ɕi]

Noun

奈(からなし) • (karanashi)

Obsolete form of 唐梨 (“red apple”).
(by extension) Obsolete spelling of 林檎 (“apple”)

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Alternative forms

如何

Pronunciation

Kun’yomi

IPA^(key): [ikã̠ɴ]

Pronoun

奈(いかん) • (ikan)

Alternative form of 奈何 (“what”)

Korean

Etymology 1

From Middle Chinese 奈 (MC nɑi^H).

Historical readings
Recorded as Middle Korean 냉〮 (Yale: náy^?) in Dongguk Jeongun (東國正韻 / 동국정운), 1448. Recorded as Middle Korean 내 (nay)^訓 (Yale: nay) in Gwangju Cheonjamun (光州千字文 / 광주천자문), 1575.

Pronunciation

(SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [nɛ] ~ [ne̞]
Phonetic hangul: [내/네]

Hanja

Wikisource奈 (eumhun 어찌 내 (eojji nae))

Hanja form^? of 내 (“but; how”).

Compounds

내하 (奈何, naeha, “how”)
막무가내 (莫無可奈, mangmuganae, “stubborn”)

Etymology 2

From Middle Chinese 奈 (MC nɑ^H).

Pronunciation

(SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [na̠]
Phonetic hangul: [나]

Hanja

奈 (eumhun 어찌 나 (eojji na))

Hanja form^? of 나 (“but; how”).

Compounds

나락 (奈落, narak)

References

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

Vietnamese

Han character

奈: Hán Nôm readings: nại, nhự

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