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方

Mandarin · pinyin fāng#

Mandarin · pinyin Fāng#

surname Fang

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方: fāng · a square, rectangle; a region; local

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

1 · fang1

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1character link18same-tone records

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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 Wiktionary · 40 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

fong1

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

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

character · Etymology 1

side; aspect; party
(obsolete) joined boats; a raft; to cross by raft or boat
(literary) to match; to be equal to; to be comparable with
(literary) to compare; to liken
(literary) to distinguish, identify, or classify; kind, category
(literary) to possess; to occupy; to take over
(literary) to bind; to tie up
(literary) to defy; to disobey
direction; orientation; quarter
place; region; locality; (attributive) local, regional
(literary, historical) state; territory; frontier; realm; the quarters of the world
(literary) square; measuring so much on each side
square; rectangular; cubical
(literary) the earth; solid ground (as square, in contrast with round heaven)
(literary) a wooden writing tablet; written records
upright; honest; proper
standard; norm; rule; law; principle
method; way; means; strategy; art, technique
formula; recipe; especially a medical prescription
(mathematics) power; especially a square or cube
(historical) a unit of area or earthwork volume
Classifier for square or rectangular objects.
(literary) a sacrifice to the spirits of the four directions
(historical) a unit of the Yellow Turban army
(literary) only; just; only then; not until
(literary) now; currently; just as; when, while
(literary) about to; going to; will
(literary) however; instead; on the contrary
(linguistics) short for 方言 (fāngyán, “dialect”)
a surname

character · Etymology 1

only used in 方與 (Fángyù, “an ancient county in present-day Yutai County, Shandong”)
(alt-of, alternative) alternative form of 房
(alt-of, alternative) alternative form of 防 (fáng)

character · Etymology 2

(Mainland-China, alt-of, neologism, pronunciation-spelling, slang) Pronunciation spelling of 慌 (huāng, “to panic”).
(Mainland-China, alt-of, neologism, pronunciation-spelling, slang) Pronunciation spelling of 慌 (huāng, “panicky”).

character · Etymology 4

(Mainland-China, alt-of, alternative, neologism, slang) alternative form of 旁 (“broad; extensive; all around”)
(only in compounds) used in 方羊, 方佯, 方洋: to wander, to roam; to soar
(only in compounds) used in 方皇: to wander; a mythical snake-like creature

character · Etymology 5

(only in compounds) used in 方良: a 罔兩／罔两; a mountain or marsh spirit

character · Etymology 6

(acoustics) phon; a unit of apparent loudness

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

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