漢字Kanji · in Tools & Weapons
盗: steal, rob
Also: pilfer
皿 carries the meaning · 次 is drawn in
Bronze · Zhou Today
Bronze: Wikimedia Commons, public domain. Today’s form: KanjiVG, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Three readings, and the words that use each
トウtou · on'yomi · in compounds
- 盗難とうなんtheft
- 盗品とうひんstolen goods
- 窃盗せっとうstealing
- 強盗ごうとうburglary
ぬすむnusumu · kun'yomi · on its own
- 盗むぬすむsteal
ぬすみnusumi · kun'yomi
- 盗み聞きするぬすみぎきするeavesdrop
Words: Kanji alive, CC BY 4.0.
Where it comes from
Origin · sourced
Phono-semantic compound (形聲)㳄 (sound) + 舟 boat
In oracle bone script, Phono-semantic compound (形聲): phonetic 㳄 + 舟 (“boat”) – an overflowing river. This character is technically a different word than the modern 盜 (“steal”), used interchangeably with 衍 in oracle bones, or as a phonetic loan for 羨, and 延 in bronze script.
Source: Wiktionary, 盜 (rev. 88127608), CC BY-SA 4.0
Memory story · made up to help you remember
“Desire (次 variant) + bowl (皿). Imagine someone having a hidden "desire" for the "vessel" or contents belonging to another—the literal act of stealing.”
Connections
Easy to confuse
The difference, side by sideIn ChineseSimplified, as in Japanese · traditional 盜 · dào
Japan uses the same simplified form as mainland China, 盗. Taiwan and Hong Kong write 盜.
- Simplified
- 盗 mainland China, Singapore
- Traditional
- 盜 Taiwan, Hong Kong
Pinyin dào most common reading
Forms and pinyin: Unicode Unihan database (Unicode License v3). Pinyin lists the most common reading, not every reading.