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發

简发 · 繁發

Mandarin · pinyin fā

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Characters in this entry

發: fā · issue, dispatch, send out, emit
发: fā · issue, dispatch, send out; hair

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

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Mandarin tones

1 · fa1

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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 · 32 senses · 4 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

but3 · but6 · faat3 · fat3

Cantonese word readings for 發. 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

to shoot; to launch
to issue
to issue — to distribute
to issue — to ship; to send for delivery
to issue — to post; to send message
to issue — to publish
to issue — to emit
to issue — to escape
to issue — (chiefly of plants or plant parts) to grow out; (of flowers) to blossom
to issue — (Hokkien) to grow out (teeth, etc.)
to depart; to leave
to dispatch
to expand; to extend; to spread
to expand; to extend; to spread — to rise; to emerge
to expand; to extend; to spread — (colloquial) to gain wealth; to become rich; to make a fortune
to expand; to extend; to spread — (of food) to rise, expand, or become porous, especially as a result of leavening
to expand; to extend; to spread — (of food) to rise, expand, or become porous, especially as a result of leavening — (Mainland China Hokkien) to become fluffy and large or bloom like a flower due to leavening
to initiate; to give start to
to generate; to produce
to become; to get into a certain state
(obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to open; to remove what seals, blocks, or shuts
to make manifest; to express; to act out
(figurative, of the mind) to make clear; to enlighten; to open up; to stimulate
Classifier for ammunition.
(slang) Classifier for ejaculation.
(Hokkien) to show effect; to break out
(Mainland China Hokkien) to go bad; to deteriorate; to become rotten
(Xiamen and Zhangzhou Hokkien) to have quicklime react by mixing with water
(Zhangzhou Hokkien) stirred with water and squeezed repeatedly becoming dense and flexible (of flour, earth, etc.)

character · Etymology 2

(obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) bent; crooked
(obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) used in 發發／发发 (bōbō, “numerous; sound of strong wind or fish jumping”)

character · Etymology 3

(Cantonese) alternative form of 𢪎 (“to whip; to whisk”)

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

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