干 is also the simplified spelling of 乹, 乾, 亁, 幹.

干

Mandarin · pinyin gān#

Meanings · gān

  1. (bound form) to have to do with; to concern oneself with
  2. one of the ten heavenly stems 天干 tiān gān
  3. (archaic) shield
Mandarin · pinyin Gān#

Meanings · Gān

  1. surname Gan
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Characters in this entry

干
gàn · oppose, offend; invade; dried
Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

1 · gan1

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Rime · Wiktionary

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

gon1 · gon3

Cantonese word readings for 干. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

character · Etymology 1

  1. to concern; to be implicated in; implication
  2. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) a shield
  3. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to request; to ask
  4. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to offend; to encroach on
  5. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to interfere; to intervene
  6. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) bank; edge of water bodies
  7. 8th tetragram of the Taixuanjing; "opposition" (𝌍)
  8. (abbreviation, alt-of) short for 天干 (tiāngān, “heavenly stem”)
  9. group (of people)
  10. A place in modern Yangzhou.
  11. (alt-of, alternative) alternative form of 乾 /干 (“dry”)
  12. (alt-of, alternative) alternative form of 澗 /涧 (jiàn, “brook; stream”)
  13. (alt-of, alternative) alternative form of 矸 (“rock”)
  14. a surname
  15. (Mainland China Hokkien) in vain; for nothing
  16. Used in transcription.

character · Etymology 1

  1. (informal, vulgar internet slang) — to defend
  2. to establish

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

干 · gan1 · Gan1
CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG · edition 2026-10-13 · source lines 37,672, 37,671
Original dictionary · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source & transformation details
Exact source records干 干 [gan1] /(bound form) to have to do with; to concern oneself with/one of the ten heavenly stems 天干[tian1 gan1]/(archaic) shield/干 干 [Gan1] /surname Gan/