Stroke order

Stroke order

知 (Kangxi radical 111,矢+3, 8 strokes,cangjie input人大口 (OKR),four-corner8640₀,composition⿰矢口)

• 倁, 椥, 蜘, 踟, 智, 㲛, 聟, 䝷, 䣽, 鼅, 䓡, 痴

• ち(Hiragana character derived fromMan'yōgana)

• Kangxi Dictionary:page 824, character 1
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 23935
• Dae Jaweon: page 1235, character 27
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 4, page 2581, character 2
• Unihan data for U+77E5

Historical forms of the character知
Shuowen Jiezi (compiled inHan)
Small seal script

Originally the same character as智, used interchangeably. Inoracle bone inscriptions, ideogrammic compound (會意 /会意): 大(“adult”) + 口(“mouth”) + 子(“child”) – to transmit knowledge. In theWarring States period,大 corrupted into矢 (OC*hliʔ) and became a sound component. InWestern Han script the component子 started being dropped, arriving at the modern form.

The two pronunciations are cognate. The word is possibly of Sino-Tibetan origin, compareMizohria,hriat(“to know”),Jingphochye(“to know”),Tibetanརིག(rig,“to know”) (Schuessler, 2007). Cognate with智 (OC*ʔl'es).

知

1. toknow; tounderstand; tocomprehend

   知人知面不知心  ― zhī rénzhī miàn bùzhī xīn  ―  One mayknow a person for a long time withoutunderstanding his true nature

   我唔知。[Guangzhou Cantonese]  ― ngo⁵ m⁴zi¹.[Jyutping]  ―  I don'tknow.

   • 「亢」之為言也，知進而不知退，知存而不知亡，知得而不知喪。其唯聖人乎！知進退存亡而不失其正者，其唯聖人乎！[Classical Chinese,trad.]
     「亢」之为言也，知进而不知退，知存而不知亡，知得而不知丧。其唯圣人乎！知进退存亡而不失其正者，其唯圣人乎！[Classical Chinese,simp.]

     From:I Ching, 11^th – 8^th centuryBCE

     “kàng” zhī wéi yán yě,zhī jìn ér bùzhī tuì,zhī cún ér bùzhī wáng,zhī dé ér bùzhī sàng. Qí wéi shèngrén hū!Zhī jìntuìcúnwáng ér bù shī qí zhèng zhě, qí wéi shèngrén hū![Pinyin]

     The force of that phrase - 'exceeding the proper limits' - indicates theknowing to advance but not to retire; to maintain but not to let perish to get but not to lose. He only is the sage whoknows to advance and to retire, to maintain and to let perish; and that without ever acting incorrectly. Yes, he only is the sage!

   • 子曰：「由！誨女知之乎？知之為知之，不知為不知，是知也。」[Classical Chinese,trad.]
     子曰：「由！诲女知之乎？知之为知之，不知为不知，是知也。」[Classical Chinese,simp.]

     From: TheAnalects of Confucius,c. 475 – 221BCE, translated based onJames Legge's version

     Zǐ yuē: “Yóu! Huì rǔ zhì zhī hū?Zhī zhī wéizhī zhī, bùzhī wéi bùzhī, shì zhì yě.”[Pinyin]

     The Master said, "You, shall I teach you what knowledge is? When youknow a thing, to hold that youknow it; and when you do notknow a thing, to allow that you do notknow it - this is knowledge."

2. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to cause to know; totell; toinform

   通知  ― tōngzhī  ―  to inform

   你去到就話我知啦[Cantonese,trad.]
   你去到就话我知啦[Cantonese,simp.]

   nei⁵ heoi³ dou³ zau⁶ waa⁶ ngo⁵zi¹ laa¹[Jyutping]

   Let meknow when you arrive.

3. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) toadminister; totake charge of

   知縣／知县  ― zhīxiàn  ―  governor of a county

   知客  ― zhīkè  ―  receptionist at a ceremony

4. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) todistinguish
5. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) toappreciate
6. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to beclose friends; close friends

   知己  ― zhījǐ  ―  close friend

   知友  ― zhīyǒu  ―  close friend

7. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) toperceive

   知驚未？／知惊未？[Cantonese]  ― zi¹ geng¹ mei⁶?[Jyutping]  ―  Are you afraid now? (literally, “Do youfeel the fright now?”)

8. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) toparticipate in; to have a hand in
9. (Hakka, including Changting, Xiaosanjiang, Shicheng) tohear; tolisten
10. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese)knowledge

    求知  ― qiúzhī  ―  to seekknowledge

    無知／无知  ― wúzhī  ―  ignorant

11. (～母)(Chineselinguistics) /tr/~/ʈ/, theMiddle Chineseinitial of知 (MC trje)

知

1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese)Original form of智 (zhì, “knowing,wisdom,intelligence”).

   • 子曰：「由！誨女知之乎？知之為知之，不知為不知，是知也。」[Classical Chinese,trad.]
     子曰：「由！诲女知之乎？知之为知之，不知为不知，是知也。」[Classical Chinese,simp.]

     From: TheAnalects of Confucius,c. 475 – 221BCE, translated based onJames Legge's version

     Zǐ yuē: “Yóu! Huì rǔzhì zhī hū? Zhī zhī wéi zhī zhī, bù zhī wéi bù zhī, shìzhì yě.”[Pinyin]

     The Master said, "You, shall I teach you whatknowledge is? When you know a thing, to hold that you know it; and when you do not know a thing, to allow that you do not know it - this isknowledge."

• “知”, in漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎^[1],香港中文大學 (theChinese University of Hong Kong),2014–
• “知”, in教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien),Ministry of Education, R.O.C.,2026.
• “知”, in教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien),Ministry of Education, R.O.C.,2026.
• 李如龙[Li, Ru-long];刘福铸[Liu, Fu-zhu];吴华英[Wu, Hua-ying];黄国城[Huang, Guo-cheng] (2019), “知”, in莆仙方言调查报告 [Investigation Report on Puxian Dialect] (overall work in Mandarin and Puxian Min),Xiamen University Press,→ISBN, page159.

• 智(non-daiyōji)

(Second grade kyōiku kanji)

1. toknow
2. wisdom

• Go-on:ち(chi,Jōyō)
• Kan-on:ち(chi,Jōyō)
• Kun:しる(shiru,知る,Jōyō)、しらせる(shiraseru,知らせる)
• Nanori:さとる(satoru)、とも(tomo)、さとし(satoshi)、さとり(satori)、ちか(chika)、ちさき(chisaki)、つかさ(tsukasa)、ともこ(tomoko)

FromMiddle Chinese智 (MC trjeH).

• (Tokyo)ち[chíꜜ] (Atamadaka – [1])^[1][2]
• IPA^(key): [t͡ɕi]

知(ち)• (chi) 

1. wisdom

(Thisetymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium. Particularly: “Middle Korean readings, if any”)