省

省 (Kangxi radical 109, 目+4, 9 strokes, cangjie input 火竹月山 (FHBU), four-corner 9060₂, composition ⿱少目)

• 偗, 㗂, 㨘, 渻, 㮐, 𨩠, 㼳, 䚇, 㾪, 箵

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 802, character 5
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 23179
• Dae Jaweon: page 1218, character 11
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 4, page 2473, character 1
• Unihan data for U+7701

• Unihan data for U+F96D

Originally 眚. In oracle bone script, an ideogrammic compound (會意 / 会意) and phono-semantic compound (形聲 / 形声, OC *sreŋʔ, *sleŋʔ): phonetic 生 (OC *sʰleːŋ, *sreŋs, “sprout”) + 目 (“eye”) – "to inspect plants". In Shuowen Jiezi, 眚 and 省 became separate characters. 生 corrupted over time into 少.

verb senses

Related to 㾪 (MC srjaengX, “thin; skinny”) (Wang, 1982).

省

1. to omit; to leave out
2. to reduce; to simplify

   • 船：舟也。从舟，鉛省聲。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, trad.]
     船：舟也。从舟，铅省声。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, simp.]

     From: Shuowen Jiezi, circa 2^nd century CE

     Chuán: zhōu yě. Cóng zhōu, qiān shěng shēng. [Pinyin]

     船 (chuán): boat. From 舟 (zhōu), and a reduced form of 鉛 / 铅 used as the phonetic component.

3. (colloquial, by extension) to have less strange, potentially genius but generally lousy ideas for the sake of others to save worry

   你還是省省吧。 [MSC, trad.]
   你还是省省吧。 [MSC, simp.]

   Nǐ háishì shěng shěng ba. [Pinyin]

   You'd better give it up.

4. to save; to economize

   省電／省电  ―  shěngdiàn  ―  to conserve electricity

   省錢／省钱  ―  shěngqián  ―  to save money

5. (literary) palace

   • 禁中者，門戶有禁，非侍禦者不得入，故曰禁中。孝元皇后父大司馬陽平侯名禁，當時避之，故曰省中。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     禁中者，门户有禁，非侍御者不得入，故曰禁中。孝元皇后父大司马阳平侯名禁，当时避之，故曰省中。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: 2^nd century, Cai Yong, 《獨斷》

     Jìnzhōng zhě, ménhù yǒu jìn, fēi shìyù zhě bùdé rù, gù yuē jìnzhōng. Xiàoyuán Huánghòu fù dàsīmǎ Yángpíng Hóu míng Jìn, dāngshí bì zhī, gù yuē shěngzhōng. [Pinyin]

     As for the Restricted Central Area [of the Imperial Palace] (禁中 jìnzhōng): those who were not [imperial] servants might not enter the restricted gateways, hence it was called the Restricted Central Area [of the Imperial Palace] (禁中 jìnzhōng). Empress Xiaoyuan's father - the Grand Marshal and Marquis of Yinping - was named Jìn (禁), so people at that time avoided that and said Palace’s Central Area.

   • 中官統領禁省，漢家故事。 [Written Vernacular Chinese, trad.]
     中官统领禁省，汉家故事。 [Written Vernacular Chinese, simp.]

     From: Romance of the Three Kingdoms, circa 14^th century CE

     Zhōngguān tǒnglǐng jìnshěng, Hànjiā gùshì. [Pinyin]

     That eunuchs manage the restricted palaces is a Han dynasty's old practice.

6. (historical, by extension) department (of a government)

   中書省／中书省  ―  Zhōngshūshěng  ―  the Central Secretariat

   • 尚書、門下、中書、秘書、殿中、內侍為六省。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]
     尚书、门下、中书、秘书、殿中、内侍为六省。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Old Book of Tang, 945 CE

     Shàngshū, Ménxià, Zhōngshū, Mìshū, Diànzhōng, Nèishì wéi liù shěng. [Pinyin]

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   1. ministry of the Japanese or North Korean government

      外務省／外务省  ―  wàiwùshěng  ―  Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

      社會安全省／社会安全省  ―  shèhuì ānquán shěng  ―  Ministry of Social Security

7. province; (originally) short for 行省 (xíngshěng) (Classifier: 個／个 m c)

   福建省  ―  Fújiàn Shěng  ―  Fujian Province

8. provincial capital
   1. (chiefly Guangdong, especially) Guangzhou

      省港澳  ―  Shěng-Gǎng-Ào  ―  Guangzhou, Hong Kong, and Macau

9. a surname

• Historically used as a suffix for many foreign major administrative divisions (states of the US, etc.), such usage is now generally obsolete (outside of fossilized instances like 麻省 (“Massachusetts”)) and replaced with 州 (zhōu, “state”).

Others:

• → Bouyei: senj
• → Lü: ᦵᦌᦲᧃ (soen)
• → Zhuang: sengj

• 縣／县 (xiàn, “Japanese prefecture”)
• 州 (zhōu, “state”)

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

省

1. to examine; to inspect
2. to greet; to visit
3. to understand; to comprehend

省

1. (Hokkien) alternative form of 啥 (siáⁿ, “what”)
   • 1914, 《最新父子狀元歌下本》‎^[1], 厦門 [Amoy]: 會文堂:

     我今出府等接伊　太院先生到府邊　就問大人得省病　李氏夫人就應伊 [Hokkien, trad.]
     我今出府等接伊　太院先生到府边　就问大人得省病　李氏夫人就应伊 [Hokkien, simp.]

     góa taⁿ chhut-hú tán-chih i, thài-īⁿ sian-siⁿ kàu hú piⁿ, chiū mn̄g tāi-jîn tit siáⁿ pīⁿ, Lí--sī hu-jîn chiū ìn i [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

   • 1987, “內山姑娘要出嫁”, 謝麗燕 (lyrics)‎^[2]performed by 葉啟田 [Yeh Chi-tien]:

     並無來對阮講出到底省原因 [Taiwanese Hokkien, trad.]
     并无来对阮讲出到底省原因 [Taiwanese Hokkien, simp.]

     pēng bô lâi tùi góa kóng-chhut tàu-té siáⁿ goân-in [Pe̍h-ōe-jī]

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

• (Cantonese)
  • “省”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎^[3], 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–
• (Hakka)
  • “Entry #14317”, in 臺灣客語辭典 [Dictionary of Taiwan Hakka] (overall work in Chinese and Hakka), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2022.
  • “Entry #14426”, in 臺灣客語辭典 [Dictionary of Taiwan Hakka] (overall work in Chinese and Hakka), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2022.
  • “Entry #16275”, in 臺灣客語辭典 [Dictionary of Taiwan Hakka] (overall work in Chinese and Hakka), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2022.
• (Hokkien)
  • The template Template:R:nan:Campbell does not use the parameter(s):

    1=18561

    Please see Module:checkparams for help with this warning.William Campbell (1913) A dictionary of the Amoy vernacular spoken throughout the prefectures of Chin-Chiu, Chiang-Chiu and Formosa (in Hokkien), 8th edition, Tainan: Taiwan Church Press, published 1961, →OCLC.
  • 小川尚義 (OGAWA Naoyoshi), editor (1931–1932), “省”, in 臺日大辭典 [Taiwanese-Japanese Dictionary]‎^[4] (overall work in Hokkien and Japanese), Taihoku: Government-General of Taiwan, →OCLC
  • 小川尚義 (OGAWA Naoyoshi), editor (1931–1932), “省”, in 臺日大辭典 [Taiwanese-Japanese Dictionary]‎^[5] (overall work in Hokkien and Japanese), Taihoku: Government-General of Taiwan, →OCLC
  • “省”, in 教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2025.
• (Puxian Min)
  • 莆田市荔城区档案馆 [Putian City Licheng District Archives], editor (2022), “省”, in 莆仙方言文读字汇 [Puxian Dialect Literary Reading Dictionary] (overall work in Mandarin and Puxian Min), page 209.

(Fourth grade kyōiku kanji)

1. government ministry
2. Chinese province

• Go-on: しょう (shō, Jōyō)^{←しやう (syau, historical)}
• Kan-on: せい (sei, Jōyō)
• Kun: かえりみる (kaerimiru, 省みる, Jōyō)^{←かへりみる (kaferimiru, 省みる, historical)}、はぶく (habuku, 省く, Jōyō)、みる (miru, 省る)、つかさ (tsukasa, 省)
• Nanori: さとし (satoshi)

From Middle Chinese 省 (MC srjaengX|sjengX).

• (Tokyo) しょー [shóꜜò] (Atamadaka – [1])^[1]
• IPA^(key): [ɕo̞ː]

省(しょう) • (shō) ^{←しやう (syau)?}

1. ministry, government department, office

   法務省(ほうむしょう)

   hōmu shō

   Ministry of Justice

2. Chinese province

   広東省(カントンしょう)

   kanton shō

   Guangdong Province

省(しょう) • (shō-) ^{←しやう (syau-)?}

1. -saving, conservation

   省(しょう)エネルギー ― shōenerugī ― energy conservation, energy efficiency

   省(しょう)時(じ)間(かん) ― shōjikan ― time conservation, time efficiency

省(しょう) • (-shō) ^{←しやう (-syau)?}

1. ministry

From Middle Chinese 省 (MC sjengX).

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [sʰʌ̹ŋ]
• Phonetic hangul: [성]

Wikisource

省 (eumhun 살필 성 (salpil seong))

1. hanja form^? of 성 (“to examine; to inspect”)
2. hanja form^? of 성 (“Chinese province”)
3. hanja form^? of 성 (“ministry; department”)

From Middle Chinese 省 (MC srjaengX).

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [sʰɛŋ] ~ [sʰe̞ŋ]
• Phonetic hangul: [생/셍]

省 (eumhun 덜 생 (deol saeng))

1. hanja form^? of 생 (“to reduce; to omit”)
2. hanja form^? of 생 (“saving; conservation”)

• 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典. [6]

省: Hán Nôm readings: tỉnh, xển, xỉnh, xĩnh, tểnh, tễnh

1. chữ Hán form of tỉnh (“province; prefecture”)