phonetic trad. (什麼/甚麼/什麽/甚麽) 什/甚 麼/麽 simp. (什么) 什 么 alternative forms
Corruption of medieval 是物 (MC dzyeX mjut, “why”) (Yuan et al., 1996: 318-324) or 什物 (MC dzyip mjut, “miscellaneous items”) (Norman, 1988; Zhang, 1982), perhaps influenced by 何物 (OC *ɡaːl mɯd, “what”).
什麼
- (interrogative) what 這是什麼？／这是什么？ ― Zhè shì shénme? ― What is this? 你平時喜歡做什麼？ [MSC, trad.]你平时喜欢做什么？ [MSC, simp.]Nǐ píngshí xǐhuān zuò shénme? [Pinyin]What do you like doing in your spare time? 我不知道他是什麼人。 [MSC, trad.]我不知道他是什么人。 [MSC, simp.]Wǒ bù zhīdào tā shì shénme rén. [Pinyin]I don’t know what kind of person he is.
- 不知甚麼漢，一任輩流嗤。 [MSC, trad.]不知甚么汉，一任辈流嗤。 [MSC, simp.]From: 贈江州太平觀道士Bù zhī shènme hàn, yī rèn bèi liú chī. [Pinyin]Who knows what kind of man he is—let the world mock him as it pleases.
- something 你想吃點什麼嗎？ [MSC, trad.]你想吃点什么吗？ [MSC, simp.]Nǐ xiǎng chī diǎn shénme ma? [Pinyin]Would you like something to eat?
- anything; whatever 我什麼都不知道。 [MSC, trad.]我什么都不知道。 [MSC, simp.]Wǒ shénme dōu bù zhīdào. [Pinyin]I don’t know anything 我什麼也不怕。／我什么也不怕。 ― Wǒ shénme yě bù pà. ― I’m not afraid of anything. 他可以想做什麼就做什麼。 [MSC, trad.]他可以想做什么就做什么。 [MSC, simp.]Tā kěyǐ xiǎng zuò shénme jiù zuò shénme. [Pinyin]He can do whatever he wants.
- (used to express surprise or anger) what 幹的是什麼事兒！ [MSC, trad.]干的是什么事儿！ [MSC, simp.]Gàn de shì shénme shìr! [Pinyin]What a thing to do!
- (used before an enumeration) thing like; such as; and so on; and what not
- (used to express disapproval, disagreement)
- ⇒ Translingual: Yiminaspis shenme
Kanji in this term 什 麼 いんHyōgai もHyōgai irregular tōon Alternative spellings 恁麼甚麼恁麽
From spoken Middle Chinese 恁麼 / 恁么 (nyimX muɑ, “what?”, archaic).[1] The spelling shifted to include the Chinese synonym 什麼 / 什么 (modern Mandarin reading of shénme), while keeping the inmo reading for 恁麼 / 恁么 (rènme), instead of the expected reading for 什麼.
Imported into Japanese by Zen monks who had studied in China.[1] Generally restricted to use by Zen practitioners.[2]
- (Tokyo) いんも [íꜜǹmò] (Atamadaka – [1])
- IPA(key): [ĩmːo̞]
什(いん)麼(も) • (inmo)
- (rare) what
- 天(てん)地(ち)と我(われ)と什(いん)麼(も)の交(こう)渉(しょう)かある。Tenchi to ware to inmo no kōshō ka aru.What is the relation between the universe and me?
Generally followed by the possessive particle の (no) and used as an adnominal, with a meaning of what kind of.
Kanji in this term 什 麼 どんな Hyōgai Hyōgai jukujikun
Orthographic borrowing from Mandarin 什麼 / 什么 (“what”).
什麼(どんな) • (donna)
- (rare) alternative spelling of どんな (donna, “what”)
- 若(も)し僕(ぼく)にアリバイが出(で)来(き)なかったとしたら、僕(ぼく)等(ら)は什麼(どんな)恐(おそ)ろしい結(けっ)果(か)になっていたか知(し)れないMoshi boku ni aribai ga dekinakatta to shitara, bokura wa donna osoroshii kekka ni natte ita ka shirenaiIf I hadn’t had an alibi, who knows what kind of terrible outcome would have awaited us?
For pronunciation and definitions of 什麼 – see the following entry. 【どんな】 [adjective] how?; like what?; what kind of…? [adjective] which one? (This term, 什麼, is an alternative spelling (literary, obsolete) of the above term.)
