低

Translingual

Stroke order

Han character

低 (Kangxi radical 9, 人+5, 7 strokes, cangjie input 人竹心一 (OHPM) or 人竹女戈 (OHVI), four-corner 2224₀, composition ⿰亻氐)

References

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 98, character 8
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 504
• Dae Jaweon: page 207, character 1
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 1, page 137, character 4
• Unihan data for U+4F4E

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Chinese

trad.		低
simp. #		低

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 低
Small seal script s05919
References: Mostly from Richard Sears' Chinese Etymology site (authorisation), which in turn draws data from various collections of ancient forms of Chinese characters, including: Shuowen Jiezi (small seal), Jinwen Bian (bronze inscriptions), Liushutong (Liushutong characters) and Yinxu Jiaguwen Bian (oracle bone script).

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

	Old Chinese
低	*tiːl
氐	*tiːl, *til
袛	*tiːl
羝	*tiːl
眡	*tiːl, *djilʔ
岻	*tiːl, *dil
奃	*tiːl
趆	*tiːl, *tiːls
柢	*tiːl, *tiːlʔ, *tiːls
邸	*tiːlʔ
底	*tiːlʔ
詆	*tiːlʔ, *diːl
坻	*tiːlʔ, *tjelʔ, *dil
抵	*tiːlʔ
牴	*tiːlʔ
觝	*tiːlʔ
弤	*tiːlʔ
軧	*tiːlʔ
骶	*tiːls
砥	*tjelʔ, *tjil, *tjilʔ, *tjils
胝	*til
疷	*til
秪	*til
泜	*dil
蚳	*dil
彽	*dil
阺	*dil
貾	*dil
祗	*tjil
厎	*tjilʔ, *tjɯʔ
茋	*tjilʔ
鴟	*tʰjil
汦	*kjeʔ, *tjil

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *tiːl) : semantic 亻 (“man, person”) + phonetic 氐 (OC *tiːl, *til) – a person lowering themselves, bowing.

Etymology

Cognate with 底 (OC *tiːlʔ, “bottom”), 柢 (OC *tiːl, *tiːlʔ, *tiːls, “root of a tree; base”), Tibetan མཐིལ (mthil, “bottom; floor”) (Schuessler, 2007).

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Standard)

  (Pinyin): dī (di¹)

  (Zhuyin): ㄉㄧ

  (Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): ди (di, I)

• Cantonese (Jyutping): dai¹
• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): tâi
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): te / ti / kě / kē / kēe

  (Teochew, Peng'im): di¹

• Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): ¹ti

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: dī
    • Zhuyin: ㄉㄧ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: di
    • Wade–Giles: ti¹
    • Yale: dī
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: di
    • Palladius: ди (di)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ti⁵⁵/
  • (Dungan)
    • Cyrillic and Wiktionary: ди (di, I)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ti²⁴/

    (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)

• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
    • Jyutping: dai¹
    • Yale: dāi
    • Cantonese Pinyin: dai¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: dei¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tɐi̯⁵⁵/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: tâi
    • Hakka Romanization System: dai^ˊ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: dai¹
    • Sinological IPA: /tai̯²⁴/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, General Taiwanese)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: te
    • Tâi-lô: te
    • Phofsit Daibuun: def
    • IPA (Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Taipei, Kaohsiung): /te⁴⁴/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /te³³/
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ti
    • Tâi-lô: ti
    • Phofsit Daibuun: dy
    • IPA (Xiamen): /ti⁴⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kě
    • Tâi-lô: kě
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /ke²²/
  • (Hokkien: General Taiwanese, Xiamen)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kē
    • Tâi-lô: kē
    • Phofsit Daibuun: ke
    • IPA (Xiamen): /ke²²/
    • IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /ke³³/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kēe
    • Tâi-lô: kēe
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /kɛ²²/

Note:

• te/ti - literary;
• kě/kē/kēe - vernacular (俗), 下 is also used.

• (Teochew)
  • Peng'im: di¹
  • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: ti
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ti³³/
• Wu
  • (Northern: Shanghai)
    • Wugniu: ¹ti
    • MiniDict: ti^平
    • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ¹ti
    • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /ti⁵³/

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• Middle Chinese: tej

Rime
Character	低
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	端 (5)
Final (韻)	齊 (39)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open
Division (等)	IV
Fanqie	都奚切
Baxter	tej
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/tei/
Pan Wuyun	/tei/
Shao Rongfen	/tɛi/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/tɛj/
Li Rong	/tei/
Wang Li	/tiei/
Bernard Karlgren	/tiei/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	dī
Expected Cantonese Reflex	dai1

• Old Chinese

  (Zhengzhang): /*tiːl/

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	低
Reading #	1/1
No.	2234
Phonetic component	氐
Rime group	脂
Rime subdivision	1
Corresponding MC rime	低
Old Chinese	/*tiːl/

Definitions

(deprecated template usage) 低

1. low (of height)
2. low (of quantity); behind average

   • 他們抱怨工資過低。 [MSC, trad.]
     他们抱怨工资过低。 [MSC, simp.]

     Tāmen bàoyuàn gōngzī guò dī. [Pinyin]

     They complained that the wages were too low.

   • 低糖的高纖豆漿／低糖的高纤豆浆  ―  dī táng de gāo xiān dòujiāng  ―  Low Sugar, High Fiber Soy Milk
3. low (of voice); quiet; soft
4. to lower; to hang (one's head); to bend; to bow

See also

• 矮 (ǎi)
• 短 (duǎn)

(deprecated template usage)

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Japanese

Kanji

低

(Fourth grade kyōiku kanji)

1. low
2. short
3. humble

Readings

• Go-on: たい (tai)
• Kan-on: てい (tei, Jōyō)
• Kun: ひくい (hikui, 低い, Jōyō)、ひくまる (hikumaru, 低まる, Jōyō)、ひくめる (hikumeru, 低める, Jōyō)

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Korean

Hanja

低 (eumhun 낮을 저 (najeul jeo))

1. low
2. cheap

Compounds

• 저렴 (低廉, jeoryeom, “cheap”)
• 저속 (低速, jeosok, “slow”)

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Vietnamese

Han character

低: Hán Nôm readings: đây, đay, đê

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

References

• Nom Foundation