蓋

蓋 (Kangxi radical 140, 艸+10, 14 strokes in traditional Chinese and Korean, 13 strokes in mainland China and Japanese, cangjie input 廿土戈廿 (TGIT), four-corner 4410₇, composition ⿱艹盍)

• 壒, 㯼, 濭, 瓂, 礚(𥕤), 䡷, 鑉(𫠁), 饚, 𡀽, 𡣨, 𭗡, 𢅤, 𢣏(㦈), 𢷞, 𣋞, 𣩱, 𤐩, 𭿫, 𫇙, 𧞔, 𮜝, 𮡈, 𨽈, 𩍰, 𩡤, 𣰛, 𨞨, 𩕭, 𤻜, 𠤅, 𡈮

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 1051, character 12
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 31652
• Dae Jaweon: page 1513, character 9
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 5, page 3260, character 13
• Unihan data for U+84CB

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *kaːbs, *kaːb, *ɡaːb) : semantic 艸 (“grass”) + phonetic 盍 (OC *ɡaːb) — a thatch.

盍 is the original character for the “cover” sense. However, because this original character was borrowed to mean “why not”, the scope of senses for 蓋 expanded to include the “cover” sense (and its extended meanings).

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *(g/k)wap (“to cover, incubate, hatch”). Within Chinese, compare:

• 盍 (OC *ɡaːb, “to join, unite; door leaf”)
• 閤 (OC *kuːb, “small gate”)
• 蛤 (OC *kuːb, “oyster, mussel”)
• 合 (OC *kuːb, *ɡuːb, “to join, unite; harmony; to close, shut”)
• 洽 (OC *ɡruːb, “to unite, assemble; to accord with”)
• 翕 (OC *qʰrub, “united, harmonious”)

Outside of Sinitic, cognate with Mizo [Term?] (hûap, “to include, to take in, to cover, to embrace, to apply to”). The Sino-Tibetan root is likely allofamic with Proto-Tibeto-Burman *ʔup (“idem”), the latter whence Burmese အုပ် (up, “to cover”) (STEDT).

蓋

1. to cover; to conceal

   蓋被／盖被 [Hokkien]  ―  kah-phōe [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]  ―  to put on a blanket

2. (figurative) to cover up; to conceal
3. (Southern Min) to put on; to apply
4. to stamp; to affix (a seal)
5. to overwhelm; to surpass
6. to build; to construct

   蓋房子／盖房子  ―  gài fángzi  ―  to build a house

7. to talk nonsense; to chatter; to brag; to boast; to bluff
8. cover; cap; lid
9. shell (of a turtle, crab, etc.)
10. ^† thatch; straw mat
11. ^† canopy
12. (dialectal) excellent; fantastic
13. (Zhangzhou and Taiwanese Hokkien, Southern Sixian Hakka) very

    • 該係蓋久蓋久个以前，𠊎還蓋細蓋細个時節，𠊎還蓋細蓋細个時節 [Sixian Hakka, trad.]
      该系盖久盖久个以前，𠊎还盖细盖细个时节，𠊎还盖细盖细个时节 [Sixian Hakka, simp.]

      From: 2006, 林姿君, 匍背 (Hunchback)

      Te he koi kiú koi kiú e yî-chhièn, ngài hàn koi se koi se e sṳ̀-chiet, ngài hàn koi se koi se e sṳ̀-chiet [Pha̍k-fa-sṳ]

      That is a very, very long time ago, when I was still very, very small, when I was still very, very small.

    • 腔口趣味雖然不知講啥，勿擱實在蓋好聽。 [Taiwanese Hokkien, trad.]
      腔口趣味虽然不知讲啥，勿搁实在盖好听。 [Taiwanese Hokkien, simp.]

      From: 2016,陳隨意, 鹿港思帶路

      Khiuⁿ-kháu chhù-bī sui-liân m̄ chai kóng siáⁿ, m̄-koh si̍t-chāi kài hó-thiaⁿ. [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]

      The accent is interesting; though not understandable, it actually sounds really nice.

14. ^† probably; roughly
15. ^† for; because
16. a surname

• 捂 (wǔ)

• → Japanese: 蓋し (kedashi) (calque)

蓋

1. (obsolete) Alternative form of 盍 (hé, “to cover; to join together; thatch”)
2. (obsolete) Alternative form of 闔／阖 (hé, “door leaf”)

蓋

1. (～邑) (historical) Ge (a city in the ancient state of Qi in modern-day Yishui County, Shandong)
2. a surname

蓋

1. (obsolete) Alternative form of 盍 (hé, “how; why”)

   • 人生世上，勢位富貴，蓋可忽乎哉？ [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     人生世上，势位富贵，盖可忽乎哉？ [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Zhanguo Ce, circa 5^th – 3^rd centuries BCE

     Rénshēng shìshàng, shìwèi fùguì, hé kě hū hū zāi? [Pinyin]

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

2. (obsolete) Alternative form of 盍 (hé, “why not”)

   • 晉獻公將殺其世子申生，公子重耳謂之曰：「子蓋言子之志於公乎？」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     晋献公将杀其世子申生，公子重耳谓之曰：「子盖言子之志于公乎？」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Book of Rites, c. 4^th – 2^nd century BCE

     Jìn Xiàn Gōng jiāng shā qí shì zǐ Shēnshēng, gōngzǐ Chóng'ěr wèi zhī yuē: “Zǐ hé yán zǐ zhī zhì yú gōng hū?” [Pinyin]

     Duke Xian of Jin, intending to put to death his heir-son Shen-sheng, another son, Chong-er, said to the latter, "Why do you not tell what is in your mind to the duke?"

   • 子貢曰：「夫子之道至大也，故天下莫能容夫子。夫子蓋少貶焉？」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     子贡曰：「夫子之道至大也，故天下莫能容夫子。夫子盖少贬焉？」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Records of the Grand Historian, by Sima Qian, c. 91 BCE

     Zǐgòng yuē: “Fūzǐ zhī dào zhì dà yě, gù tiānxià mò néng róng fūzǐ. Fūzǐ hé shǎo biǎn yān?” [Pinyin]

     Zigong said, "Master, your philosophy is the greatest, and thus no one in the world can accept you. Why do you, Master, not slightly lower your standards?"

蓋

1. Alternative form of 匼 (“to cover”)

• “Entry #10820”, in 教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2024.

(Jōyō kanji)

1. cover
2. lid
3. flap

• Go-on: かい (kai)、ごう (gō)
• Kan-on: かい (kai)、こう (kō)
• Kan’yō-on: がい (gai, Jōyō)
• Kun: ふた (futa, 蓋, Jōyō)、けだし (kedashi, 蓋し)、おおう (ōu, 蓋う)、かさ (kasa, 蓋)

From Old Japanese. Used in the Man'yōshū of circa 759 CE to phonetically spell Mount Futagami as 蓋上山. In turn, from Proto-Japonic *pota.

• (Tokyo) ふた [fùtá] (Heiban – [0])^[1]
• IPA^(key): [ɸɯ̟ta̠]

蓋(ふた) or 蓋(フタ) • (futa) 

1. lid; cap; cover; (malacology) operculum

   箱(はこ)のふた ― hako no futa ― box lid

   ビンの蓋(ふた) ― bin no futa ― cap of a bottle

蓋 (eumhun 덮을 개 (deopeul gae))

1. Hanja form^? of 개 (“cover”).

蓋: Hán Nôm readings: cái

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