肥

Translingual

Han character

肥 (Kangxi radical 130, 肉+4, 8 strokes, cangjie input 月日山 (BAU), four-corner 7721₇, composition ⿰月巴(GJKV) or ⿰⺼巴(HT))

Derived characters

𭵀

References

Kangxi Dictionary: page 974, character 23
Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 29290
Dae Jaweon: page 1426, character 13
Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 3, page 2055, character 1
Unihan data for U+80A5

Chinese

trad.		肥
simp. ^#		肥

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 肥
Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Transcribed ancient scripts

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

	Old Chinese
蜰	pɯlʔ, bɯl
肥	*bɯl
淝	*bɯl
萉	*bɯls

Shuowen Jiezi: Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) : 肉 (“meat”) + 卪 (“person kneeling”). Ji Xusheng (2004) posits that its actually a phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *bɯl) : semantic 肉 + abbreviated phonetic 妃 (OC *pʰɯːls, *pʰɯl).

Etymology 1

STEDT provisionally assigns this to Proto-Sino-Tibetan *bu ~ bur.

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Standard)
(Pinyin): féi (fei²)

(Zhuyin): ㄈㄟˊ

(Chengdu, Sichuanese Pinyin): fei²

(Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): фи (fi, I)
Cantonese
(Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): fei⁴ / fai⁶

(Taishan, Wiktionary): fei³
Gan (Wiktionary): fii⁴
Hakka
(Sixian, PFS): phì

(Hailu, HRS): pui

(Meixian, Guangdong): pi²
Jin (Wiktionary): fei¹
Northern Min (KCR): bṳ̂
Eastern Min (BUC): bùi / pì
Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing): bui² / hi²
Southern Min
(Hokkien, POJ): pûi / hûi

(Teochew, Peng'im): bui⁵
Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): ⁶bi; ⁶vi
Xiang (Changsha, Wiktionary): fei²

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: féi
  - Zhuyin: ㄈㄟˊ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: féi
  - Wade–Giles: fei²
  - Yale: féi
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: feir
  - Palladius: фэй (fɛj)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /feɪ̯³⁵/
- (Chengdu)
  - Sichuanese Pinyin: fei²
  - Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: fei
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /fei²¹/
- (Dungan)
  - Cyrillic and Wiktionary: фи (fi, I)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /fi²⁴/
  (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
  - Jyutping: fei⁴ / fai⁶
  - Yale: fèih / faih
  - Cantonese Pinyin: fei⁴ / fai⁶
  - Guangdong Romanization: féi⁴ / fei⁶
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /fei̯²¹/, /fɐi̯²²/

Note: fai6 - rare.

- (Taishanese, Taicheng)
  - Wiktionary: fei³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /fei²²/
Gan
- (Nanchang)
  - Wiktionary: fii⁴
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /fɨi³⁵/
Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: phì
  - Hakka Romanization System: pi^ˇ
  - Hagfa Pinyim: pi²
  - Sinological IPA: /pʰi¹¹/
- (Hailu, incl. Zhudong)
  - Hakka Romanization System: pui
  - Sinological IPA: /pʰui⁵⁵/
- (Meixian)
  - Guangdong: pi²
  - Sinological IPA: /pʰi¹¹/
Jin
- (Taiyuan)⁺
  - Wiktionary: fei¹
  - Sinological IPA (old-style): /fei¹¹/
Northern Min
- (Jian'ou)
  - Kienning Colloquial Romanized: bṳ̂
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /py³³/
Eastern Min
- (Fuzhou)
  - Bàng-uâ-cê: bùi / pì
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /pui⁵³/, /pʰi⁵³/

Note:

bùi - vernacular;
pì - literary.

Puxian Min
- (Putian, Xianyou)
  - Pouseng Ping'ing: bui²
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /pui¹³/
- (Putian, Xianyou)
  - Pouseng Ping'ing: hi²
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /hi¹³/

Note:

bui2- vernacular;
hi2 - literary.

Southern Min
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Jinjiang, General Taiwanese, Penang)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: pûi
  - Tâi-lô: puî
  - Phofsit Daibuun: puii
  - IPA (Kaohsiung, Penang): /pui²³/
  - IPA (Xiamen, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, Taipei): /pui²⁴/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /pui¹³/
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Jinjiang, General Taiwanese)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: hûi
  - Tâi-lô: huî
  - Phofsit Daibuun: huii
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /hui¹³/
  - IPA (Xiamen, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, Taipei): /hui²⁴/
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /hui²³/

Note:

pûi - vernacular;
hûi - literary.

(Teochew)
- Peng'im: bui⁵
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: pûi
- Sinological IPA ^(key): /pui⁵⁵/

Wu
- (Northern: Shanghai)
  - Wugniu: ⁶bi; ⁶vi
  - MiniDict: bi^去; vi^去
  - Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ³bi; ³vi
  - Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /bi²³/, /vi²³/
Xiang
- (Changsha)
  - Wiktionary: fei²
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɸe̞i̯¹³/

Dialectal data

Variety	Location	edit 肥
Mandarin	Beijing	/fei³⁵/
	Harbin	/fei²⁴/
	Tianjin	/fei⁴⁵/
	Jinan	/fei⁴²/
	Qingdao	/fe⁴²/
	Zhengzhou	/fi⁴²/
	Xi'an	/fi²⁴/
	Xining	/fɨ²⁴/
	Yinchuan	/fei⁵³/
	Lanzhou	/fei⁵³/
	Ürümqi	/fei⁵¹/
	Wuhan	/fei²¹³/
	Chengdu	/fei³¹/
	Guiyang	/fei²¹/
	Kunming	/fei³¹/
	Nanjing	/fəi²⁴/
	Hefei	/fe⁵⁵/
Jin	Taiyuan	/fei¹¹/
	Pingyao	/xuei¹³/
	Hohhot	/fei³¹/
Wu	Shanghai	/vi²³/ /bi²³/
	Suzhou	/vi¹³/
	Hangzhou	/bi²¹³/ /vi²¹³/
	Wenzhou	/vei³¹/ /bei³¹/
Hui	Shexian	/fe⁴⁴/
Hui	Tunxi	/fe⁴⁴/
Xiang	Changsha	/fei¹³/
Xiang	Xiangtan	/ɸəi¹²/
Gan	Nanchang	/fɨi⁴⁵/
Hakka	Meixian	/pʰi¹¹/
Hakka	Taoyuan	/pʰui¹¹/
Cantonese	Guangzhou	/fei²¹/
	Nanning	/fi²¹/
	Hong Kong	/fei²¹/
Min	Xiamen (Hokkien)	/hui³⁵/ /pui³⁵/
	Fuzhou (Eastern Min)	/puoi⁵³/
	Jian'ou (Northern Min)	/py³³/
	Shantou (Teochew)	/pui⁵⁵/
	Haikou (Hainanese)	/ʔbui³¹/

Middle Chinese: bj+j

Rime
Character	肥
Reading #	1/1
Initial (聲)	並 (3)
Final (韻)	微 (21)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed
Division (等)	III
Fanqie	符非切
Baxter	bj+j
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/bʉi/
Pan Wuyun	/bʷɨi/
Shao Rongfen	/biuəi/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/buj/
Li Rong	/biuəi/
Wang Li	/bĭwəi/
Bernhard Karlgren	/bʱwe̯i/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	féi
Expected Cantonese Reflex	fei⁴

Old Chinese
(Baxter–Sagart): /*[b][ə]r/

(Zhengzhang): /*bɯl/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	肥
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	féi
Middle Chinese	‹ bjɨj ›
Old Chinese	/*[b][ə]r/
English	fat (adj.)
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	肥
Reading #	1/1
No.	3118
Phonetic component	肥
Rime group	微
Rime subdivision	1
Corresponding MC rime	肥
Old Chinese	/*bɯl/
Notes	俞敏雲妃省聲

Definitions

肥

fat; plump; obese (adjective)
農場裡的小豬長得肥肥的，好可愛。 [MSC, trad.]
农场里的小猪长得肥肥的，好可爱。 [MSC, simp.]
Nóngchǎng lǐ de xiǎozhū zhǎng de féiféi de, hǎo kě'ài. [Pinyin]
The pigs in the farm are quite plump, very cute.

一時嫌人肥，一時嫌人瘦，都唔知點好。 [Cantonese, trad.]
一时嫌人肥，一时嫌人瘦，都唔知点好。 [Cantonese, simp.]
jat¹ si⁴ jim⁴ jan⁴ fei⁴, jat¹ si⁴ jim⁴ jan⁴ sau³, dou¹ m⁴ zi¹ dim² hou². [Jyutping]
Sometimes, I'm criticized for being fat, while other times, I'm criticized for being skinny. I don't know what to do.
fat; fatness (noun)
減肥／减肥 ― jiǎnféi ― to lose weight
fertile
fertiliser
化肥 ― huàféi ― chemical fertilizer

氮肥 ― dànféi ― nitrogenous fertilizer

施肥 ― shīféi ― to apply fertilizer
- 只要土在肥就在 / 一袋能頂兩袋 [MSC, trad.]
  只要土在肥就在 / 一袋能顶两袋 [MSC, simp.]
  From: 2000s, 美国·圣地亚戈, an advertisement of the product 金氮丹
  zhǐyào tǔ zài féi jiù zài / yī dài néng dǐng liǎng dài [Pinyin]
  (please add an English translation of this usage example)
(usually derogatory) benefit; advantage; gain

Usage notes

In northern varieties, including Standard Mandarin, 肥 (féi) is usually used for animals, and people are described as 胖 (pàng). This distinction is not seen in southern varieties, such as Cantonese, Hakka, and Min.

Synonyms

(fat):

Dialectal synonyms of 胖 (“fat (a.)”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		胖
Northeastern Mandarin	Beijing	胖, 富態
	Taiwan	胖
	Malaysia	胖, 肥
	Singapore	胖, 肥
Jilu Mandarin	Jinan	胖, 富態
Central Plains Mandarin	Xi'an	胖, 富態
Southwestern Mandarin	Chengdu	胖, 富態
Southwestern Mandarin	Wuhan	胖, 富態
Jianghuai Mandarin	Yangzhou	胖, 富態
Jianghuai Mandarin	Hefei	胖, 富態
Cantonese	Guangzhou	肥
	Hong Kong	肥
	Hong Kong (Kam Tin Weitou)	肥
	Macau	肥
	Guangzhou (Panyu)	肥
	Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu)	肥
	Guangzhou (Conghua)	肥
	Guangzhou (Zengcheng)	肥
	Foshan	肥
	Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai)	肥
	Foshan (Shunde)	肥
	Foshan (Sanshui)	肥
	Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming)	肥
	Zhongshan (Shiqi)	肥
	Zhuhai (Qianshan, Xiangzhou)	肥
	Zhuhai (Shangheng, Doumen; Tanka)	肥
	Zhuhai (Doumen)	肥
	Jiangmen (Baisha)	肥
	Jiangmen (Xinhui)	肥
	Taishan	肥
	Kaiping (Chikan)	肥
	Enping (Niujiang)	肥
	Heshan (Yayao)	肥
	Dongguan	肥
	Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an)	肥
	Yangjiang	肥, 生肉
	Nanning	肥
	Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu)	肥
	Singapore (Guangfu)	肥
Gan	Nanchang	胖
Hakka	Meixian	肥
	Xingning	肥
	Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua)	肥
	Huiyang	肥
	Huidong (Daling)	肥
	Dongguan (Qingxi)	肥
	Shenzhen (Shatoujiao)	肥
	Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui)	肥
	Shaoguan (Qujiang)	肥
	Lianshan (Xiaosanjiang)	肥
	Guangzhou (Lütian, Conghua)	肥
	Changting	壯, 肥
	Wuping	壯
	Wuping (Pingyu)	肥
	Liancheng	壯
	Ninghua	壯
	Ruijin	壯
	Shicheng	壯
	Shangyou (Shexi)	壯
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	肥, 大箍
	Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian)	肥, 大箍
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu)	肥, 大箍
	Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu)	肥, 大箍
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping)	肥, 大箍
	Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an)	大箍
	Senai (Huiyang)	肥
Jin	Taiyuan	胖, 肉, 富態
Northern Min	Jian'ou	肥
Eastern Min	Fuzhou	肥
Eastern Min	Singapore (Fuqing)	發福, 食好看
Southern Min	Xiamen	肥
	Quanzhou	肥
	Zhangzhou	肥
	Taipei	大箍, 肥
	New Taipei (Sanxia)	大箍
	Kaohsiung	大箍, 肥
	Yilan	大箍, 肥
	Changhua (Lukang)	大箍, 肥
	Taichung	肥, 大箍
	Tainan	大箍, 肥
	Hsinchu	肥
	Kinmen	大箍, 肥
	Penghu (Magong)	大箍, 肥
	Penang (Hokkien)	肥
	Singapore (Hokkien)	肥
	Manila (Hokkien)	肥
	Chaozhou	肥
	Shantou	肥
	Jieyang	肥
	Johor Bahru (Teochew)	肥
	Singapore (Teochew)	肥
	Leizhou	肥
	Wenchang	肥
Zhongshan Min	Zhongshan (Longdu, Shaxi)	肥
Wu	Suzhou	胖, 壯
	Ningbo	壯
	Wenzhou	壯
Xiang	Changsha	胖
Xiang	Shuangfeng	胖

(benefit):

edit

利益 (lìyì)
好處／好处
實利／实利 (shílì)
惠 (huì) (literary, or in compounds)
收益 (shōuyì)
甜頭／甜头 (Jin)
益處／益处 (yìchù)
補／补 (bǔ) (literary, or in compounds)
補益／补益 (bǔyì)
裨益 (bìyì)

Antonyms

(antonym(s) of “fat”): 瘦 (shòu, “skinny”)

Compounds

Descendants

→ Proto-Tai: *bwiːᴬ (“fat”)
- Thai: พี (pii)
- Zhuang: biz
→ Thai: ปุ๋ย (bpǔi, “fertilizer”)

Etymology 2

Shortened from 肥佬 (fei4 lou2), from English fail.

Pronunciation

Cantonese (Jyutping): fei⁴

Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
  - Jyutping: fei⁴
  - Yale: fèih
  - Cantonese Pinyin: fei⁴
  - Guangdong Romanization: féi⁴
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /fei̯²¹/

Definitions

肥

(Hong Kong Cantonese) to fail (a test)
(Hong Kong Cantonese) to fail (someone) in a test

References

“肥”, 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–

Japanese

Kanji

肥

(Fifth grade kyōiku kanji)

fat, plump
productive, fertile

Readings

Go-on: び (bi)
Kan-on: ひ (hi, Jōyō)
Kun: こやし (koyashi, 肥やし, Jōyō)、こえ (koe, 肥, Jōyō)、こえる (koeru, 肥える, Jōyō)、こやす (koyasu, 肥やす, Jōyō)、ふとる (futoru, 肥る)

Etymology

Kanji in this term
肥
こえ Grade: 5
kun'yomi

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

Noun

肥(こえ) • (koe)

manure, fertilizer, dung

Compounds

Korean

Hanja

肥 • (bi) (hangeul 비)

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

Vietnamese

Han character

肥: Hán Nôm readings: phì, phè, phề

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

Zhuang

Noun

肥

Sawndip form of feiz (“fire”)