居然
Chinese
| reside | so; thus; like this so; thus; like this; ‑ly; correct; right | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| trad. (居然) | 居 | 然 | |
| simp. #(居然) | 居 | 然 | |
Pronunciation
- Mandarin
- Cantonese (Jyutping): geoi1 jin4 / geoi1 jin4-2
- Southern Min
- Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): 1ciu-zoe
- Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)+
- Hanyu Pinyin: jūrán
- Zhuyin: ㄐㄩ ㄖㄢˊ
- Tongyong Pinyin: jyurán
- Wade–Giles: chü1-jan2
- Yale: jyū-rán
- Gwoyeu Romatzyh: jiuran
- Palladius: цзюйжань (czjujžanʹ)
- Sinological IPA (key): /t͡ɕy⁵⁵ ʐän³⁵/
- (Standard Chinese)+
- Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
- Jyutping: geoi1 jin4 / geoi1 jin4-2
- Yale: gēui yìhn / gēui yín
- Cantonese Pinyin: goey1 jin4 / goey1 jin4-2
- Guangdong Romanization: gêu1 yin4 / gêu1 yin4-2
- Sinological IPA (key): /kɵy̯⁵⁵ jiːn²¹/, /kɵy̯⁵⁵ jiːn²¹⁻³⁵/
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
- Southern Min
- (Hokkien: Xiamen)
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ku-liân
- Tâi-lô: ku-liân
- Phofsit Daibuun: kulieen
- IPA (Xiamen): /ku⁴⁴⁻²² liɛn²⁴/
- (Hokkien: Quanzhou)
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kir-liân
- Tâi-lô: kir-liân
- IPA (Quanzhou): /kɯ³³ liɛn²⁴/
- (Hokkien: Zhangzhou)
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ki-jiân
- Tâi-lô: ki-jiân
- Phofsit Daibuun: kijieen
- IPA (Zhangzhou): /ki⁴⁴⁻²² d͡ziɛn¹³/
- (Teochew)
- Peng'im: ge1 riang5
- Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: kṳ jiâng
- Sinological IPA (key): /kɯ³³⁻²³ d͡ziaŋ⁵⁵/
- (Hokkien: Xiamen)
- Wu
Adverb
居然
- unexpectedly; to one's surprise; surprisingly
- (literary) obviously; apparently
- 答曰：「日遠。不聞人從日邊來，居然可知。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
- From: c. 439-444, 世說新語 (Shìshuōxīnyǔ) (Shishuo Xinyu)
- Dá yuē: “Rì yuǎn. Bù wén rén cóng rì biān lái, jūrán kězhī.” [Pinyin]
- He replied, 'it’s abundantly clear that the Sun is farther away because never have I heard of anyone coming from there.'
答曰：「日远。不闻人从日边来，居然可知。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
Synonyms
Dialectal synonyms of 居然 (“unexpectedly; to one's surprise; surprisingly”) [map]
| Variety | Location | Words |
|---|---|---|
| Formal (Written Standard Chinese) | 居然, 竟然, 竟 | |
| Northeastern Mandarin | Taiwan | 居然, 竟然 |
| Singapore | 竟然 | |
| Southwestern Mandarin | Liuzhou | 敢, 硬敢 |
| Jianghuai Mandarin | Yangzhou | 居然 |
| Cantonese | Guangzhou | 竟然 |
| Hong Kong | 竟然, 居然, 竟然間 | |
| Southern Min | Xiamen | 煞, 竟然 |
| Quanzhou | 煞, 竟然 | |
| Zhangzhou | 煞, 竟然 | |
| Tainan | 煞, 竟然 | |
| Jieyang | 夰, 紲, 一回, 落, 敢敢 | |
| Wu | Shanghai | 居然, 竟然, 竟, 先勿先, 伊講 |