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Etymology data from Wiktionary via Wiktextract (CC BY-SA 4.0). Chinese character data from the 說文解字, the Taiwan MOE 國語辭典簡編本 (CC BY-ND 3.0 TW) and HSK/TOCFL lists.

Explanations are written by a local model (gemma4) and only published after a verification pass against the cited sources. How it works.

Chinese

白

bái
white
  • pictogram
  • HSK 3
  • TOCFL 5
  • radical 白
  • 5 strokes

Etymology graph

  • inherited
  • borrowed
  • derived
  • parts
  • meaning component
  • sound component
  • related
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Origin

Two theories:

*pictogram (象形) of an acorn. Compare 櫟／栎 (lì).

*A human head. Compare 皃 (貌 (mào)) and 黑 (hēi).

Possibly part of a phonetic family contrasting stop initials (P/B) for exposure/brightness against nasal initials (M) for concealment/darkness; compare 黑 (OC *m̥ˤək) and 白 (OC *bˤrak).

STEDT derives it from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *bawk (“white”), whence also Proto-Bodo-Garo *bok (“white”), Limbu ᤑ (phô, “white”); also compare Proto-Mon-Khmer *kɓɔɔk (“white, grey”).

However, Schuessler (2007) finds it difficult to reconcile these forms with Middle Chinese due to the lack of medial r. Instead, he proposes a derivation from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *bar (“white”) with -k extension, thus cognate with 皤 (OC *baːl, “white”) (Wang, 1982), Mizo vâr (“(to be) white”), Proto-Karen *ʔ(b)wa (“white”).

From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Lineage

  • partChinese丿 “left-falling stroke, usually read as 撇”
  • inheritedProto-Sino-Tibetan*bawk “white”
    • derivedProto-Sino-Tibetan*(p/b/h)(w/j)a(ː)(r/l/n/t) “white”
  • partChinese日 “Sun”

Related: Proto-Bodo-Garo *bok, Limbu ᤑ, Proto-Mon-Khmer *kɓɔɔk, Mizo vâr, Proto-Karen *ʔ(b)wa

Words built on it: 的, 百, 怕, 拍, 白色, 明白, 習, 白天, 白菜

Meanings

character
  1. white
  2. clear; easy to understand
  3. clear; pure; plain; blank
  4. bright; well-lit
  5. eminent; prominent
  6. vernacular

Shuowen Jiezi 說文解字

白：西方色也。陰用事，物色白。从入合二。二，陰數。凡白之屬皆从白。

Xu Shen, c. 100 CE — the first analytical dictionary of Chinese characters.

國語辭典 definitions

  1. 完全反射光線，像雪或乳汁般素淨的顏色。與「黑」相對。 例：雪白、純白、黑白分明
  2. 白色的。 例：白紙、白布、藍天白雲
  3. 清楚。 例：真相大白、含冤莫白、明白
  4. 空空的，沒加上任何東西的。 例：白飯、白開水
  5. 徒然、枉費。 例：他們只認得錢，託他們真是白託。
  6. 不付代價而得好處。 例：白吃、白喝

© Ministry of Education, Taiwan — CC BY-ND 3.0 TW, shown unaltered.

How 白 was written 字形演變

  1. 白 in Oracle bone script
    Oracle bone
    甲骨文
    Shang, c. 1250–1050 BCE
  2. 白 in Bronze script
    Bronze
    金文
    Shang–Zhou
  3. 白 in Chu slips & silk script
    Chu slips & silk
    楚系簡帛
    Warring States
  4. 白 in Qin slips script
    Qin slips
    秦系簡牘
    Qin
  5. 白 in Small seal script
    Small seal
    說文小篆
    Shuowen, c. 100 CE
  6. 白 in Regular script
    Regular
    楷書
    since c. 200 CE

Historical forms collected by the legacy etymfun dataset; most characters have several attested variants.

Sources

  • Structural decomposition (chaizi) — See upstream
  • Historical glyph forms (zdic.net 字形演变) — Rights unverified
  • HSK / TOCFL word lists — Facts (levels)
  • 教育部《國語辭典簡編本》 (Taiwan MOE) — CC BY-ND 3.0 TW
  • 說文解字 Shuowen Jiezi (Xu Shen, c. 100 CE) — Public domain
  • Written form — n/a
  • Wiktionary (via Wiktextract / kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0
  • Wiktionary: 白