禍水

禍水

Chinese

		disaster	water; river
trad. (禍水)		禍	水
simp. (祸水)		祸	水
Literally: “water of calamity”.

Etymology

Originally used to describe Empress Xiaocheng (Zhao Feiyan), an empress during the Han dynasty, in the erotic fiction Feiyan Waizhuan.

Empress Xiaocheng was known for her slender build, also giving rise partly to the idiom 環肥燕瘦 (literally “plump Huan, slender Fei”).

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): huòshuǐ

  (Zhuyin): ㄏㄨㄛˋ ㄕㄨㄟˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): wo⁶ seoi²
• Min Nan (POJ): hō-súi

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: huòshuǐ
    • Zhuyin: ㄏㄨㄛˋ ㄕㄨㄟˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: huòshuěi
    • Wade–Giles: huo⁴-shui³
    • Yale: hwò-shwěi
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: huohshoei
    • Palladius: хошуй (xošuj)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /xwɔ⁵¹ ʂweɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou)⁺
    • Jyutping: wo⁶ seoi²
    • Yale: woh séui
    • Cantonese Pinyin: wo⁶ soey²
    • Guangdong Romanization: wo⁶ sêu²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /wɔː²² sɵy̯³⁵/
• Min Nan
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: hō-súi
    • Tâi-lô: hō-suí
    • Phofsit Daibuun: hoixsuie
    • IPA (Xiamen): /ho²²⁻²¹ sui⁵³/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /ho⁴¹⁻²² sui⁵⁵⁴/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /ho²²⁻²¹ sui⁵³/
    • IPA (Taipei): /ho³³⁻¹¹ sui⁵³/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /hɤ³³⁻²¹ sui⁴¹/

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• Middle Chinese: /ɦuɑ^X  ɕˠiuɪ^X/

Rime
Character	禍	水
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Initial (聲)	匣 (33)	書 (26)
Final (韻)	戈 (95)	脂 (18)
Tone (調)	Rising (X)	Rising (X)
Openness (開合)	Closed	Closed
Division (等)	I	III
Fanqie	胡果切	式軌切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ɦuɑX/	/ɕˠiuɪX/
Pan Wuyun	/ɦuɑX/	/ɕʷᵚiX/
Shao Rongfen	/ɣuɑX/	/ɕiuɪX/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ɦwaX/	/ɕjwiX/
Li Rong	/ɣuɑX/	/ɕjuiX/
Wang Li	/ɣuɑX/	/ɕwiX/
Bernard Karlgren	/ɣuɑX/	/ɕwiX/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	huò	shuǐ
Expected Cantonese Reflex	wo6	seoi2

Noun

禍水

1. (figuratively) charming beauty, as a source of calamity; femme fatale
2. (figuratively, in general) person or thing that causes great trouble or suffering; scourge; vicious power; bane

Derived terms

紅顏禍水／红颜祸水 (hóngyánhuòshuǐ)