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

• 倷 㖠 捺 㮈 㴎 錼 䱞 萘 𡞏 𪨼 𭝎 𭦛 𪻦 𥇧 𮁿 𦝀 𮚎 𮛢 𩈫 𩜪 𣮦 𬷝 𪥑 𠣼 𫆕 𤷈 𦤗 𮂃 𭝍

Descendants

• な
• ナ

References

• Kangxi Dictionary: 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 shape variant of 柰 (Wang, 1996).

Etymology

“how; why”

Possibly a contraction of 若 (OC *nak) and 之 (OC *tə), as in 若之何 (ruòzhīhé) (Pulleyblank, 1995, p. 34).

“nano-”

Borrowed from English nano-.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): nài (nai⁴)

  (Zhuyin): ㄋㄞˋ

• Cantonese

  (Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): noi⁶

  (Taishan, Wiktionary): noi⁵

• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): nai
• Eastern Min (BUC): nâi
• Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing): nai⁵
• Southern Min

  (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–Hong Kong)
    • 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 Neipu)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: nai
    • Hakka Romanization System: nai
    • Hagfa Pinyim: nai⁴
    • Sinological IPA: /nai̯⁵⁵/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: nâi
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /nˡɑi²⁴²/
• Puxian Min
  • (Putian)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: nai⁵
    • Báⁿ-uā-ci̍: nāi
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /nai¹¹/
  • (Xianyou)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: nai⁵
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /nai²¹/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou, variant in Taiwan, Xiamen)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tā
    • Tâi-lô: tā
    • Phofsit Daibuun: da
    • Sinological IPA (Xiamen): /ta²²/
    • Sinological IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /ta³³/
    • Sinological IPA (Quanzhou): /ta⁴¹/
  • (Hokkien: General Taiwanese)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ta
    • Tâi-lô: ta
    • Phofsit Daibuun: daf
    • Sinological IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /ta⁴⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tāi
    • Tâi-lô: tāi
    • Phofsit Daibuun: dai
    • Sinological IPA (Zhangzhou): /tai²²/
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, General Taiwanese, Tong'an)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: nāi
    • Tâi-lô: nāi
    • Phofsit Daibuun: nai
    • Sinological IPA (Quanzhou): /nãi⁴¹/
    • Sinological IPA (Taipei, Kaohsiung): /nãi³³/
    • Sinological IPA (Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Tong'an): /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: najH, naH

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
Baxter	najH	naH
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/nɑiH/	/nɑH/
Pan Wuyun	/nɑiH/	/nɑH/
Shao Rongfen	/nɑiH/	/nɑH/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/najH/	/naH/
Li Rong	/nɑiH/	/nɑH/
Wang Li	/nɑiH/	/nɑH/
Bernhard Karlgren	/nɑiH/	/nɑH/
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	‹ najH ›
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

1. how; why (used in rhetorical questions)
2. to bear; to stand; to endure
3. [from 1985] (Taiwan) nano- (SI unit prefix)

   Synonym: 納 / 纳 (nà) (Mainland China)

See also

SI prefix
Last		Next
微 (wēi)	奈/納	皮 (pí)

Compounds

• 不奈
• 不奈何
• 不奈煩 / 不奈烦
• 不寧奈 / 不宁奈
• 可奈
• 叵奈
• 基奈
• 奈上祝下
• 奈何 (nàihé)
• 奈何橋 / 奈何桥 (nàihéqiáo)
• 奈升
• 奈及利亞 / 奈及利亚 (Nàijílìyà)
• 奈向
• 奈守
• 奈曼
• 奈洛比 (Nàiluòbǐ)
• 奈煩 / 奈烦 (nàifán)
• 奈秒
• 奈米 (nàimǐ)
• 奈良 (Nàiliáng)
• 奈良時代 / 奈良时代
• 如之奈何 (rú zhī nàihé)
• 寧奈 / 宁奈
• 尀奈
• 山奈
• 山奈鉀 / 山奈钾
• 康奈爾 / 康奈尔
• 康奈爾大學 / 康奈尔大学
• 怎奈
• 末奈何
• 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
• 莫可奈何
• 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 (Xīnài)
• 西奈半島 / 西奈半岛 (Xīnài Bàndǎo)
• 西奈協定 / 西奈协定
• 西奈山 (Xīnài Shān)
• 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)‎^[1], 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–
• 莆田市荔城区档案馆 [Putian City Licheng District Archives], editor (2022), “奈”, in 莆仙方言文读字汇 [Puxian Dialect Literary Reading Dictionary] (overall work in Mandarin and Puxian Min), page 162.

Japanese

Kanji

奈

(Fourth grade kyōiku kanji)

1. abbreviation of 奈良: the city of Nara
2. what, how
3. (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)、なんぞ (nanzo, 奈ぞ)、からなし (karanashi, 奈)
• Nanori: なに (nani)、なん (nan)

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
奈
からなし Grade: 4
kun'yomi

For pronunciation and definitions of 奈 – see the following entry.

【唐梨からなし】 [noun] Chinese quince (Pseudocydonia sinensis) Alternative spellings 柰, カラナシ

(This term, 奈, is an alternative spelling of the above term.)

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
奈
りんご Grade: 4
irregular

For pronunciation and definitions of 奈 – see the following entry.

【林檎りんご】 [noun] [from 918] apple [noun] (slang) the company Apple Inc. or its products Alternative spelling 苹果

(This term, 奈, is an alternative spelling (obsolete, rare) of the above term.)

Usage notes

By extension from the からなし (karanashi) reading above.

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
奈
いかん Grade: 4
kun'yomi

For pronunciation and definitions of 奈 – see the following entry.

【如何いかん】 [noun] the whatevers, the whys and wherefores; however [it may be] [adverb] howsoever, however [it may be] Alternative spelling 奈何

(This term, 奈, is an alternative spelling of the above term.)

References

• “^△奈”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia]‎^[2] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2026

Korean

Etymology 1

From Middle Chinese 奈 (MC najH).

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

奈 (eumhun 어찌 내 (eojji nae))

1. 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 naH).

Pronunciation

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

Hanja

奈 (eumhun 어찌 나 (eojji na))

1. 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. [3]

Vietnamese

Han character

奈: Hán Nôm readings: nại, nhự

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