局

局 (Kangxi radical 44, 尸+4, 7 strokes, cangjie input 尸尸口 (SSR), four-corner 7722₇, composition ⿸尸⿹𠃌口)

• 侷, 挶, 梮, 焗, 䏱, 䎤, 跼, 鋦, 锔, 駶

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 300, character 22
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 7653
• Dae Jaweon: page 596, character 15
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 2, page 967, character 8
• Unihan data for U+5C40

Phono-semantic compound (形聲 / 形声, OC *ɡoɡ): semantic 尸 + phonetic 句 (OC *koː, *koːs, *kos, *ɡo).

Folk etymology found in some dictionaries mistakes it for a representation of a deceased person's limbs being bent and buried.^[1]

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *N-kəwk.

局

1. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) bent; crooked
2. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to bend
3. to restrict; to limit
4. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) to force; to coerce
5. narrow; restricted
6. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) near; close
7. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) breadth of mind; tolerance
8. (obsolete on its own in Standard Chinese) neighbour
9. part; component; local
10. arrangement; distribution; structure; organisation
11. (administration) office; bureau; board; administration

    郵局／邮局  ―  yóujú  ―  post office

    警局  ―  jǐngjú  ―  police station

12. (administration) the fifth and the sixth administrative levels
13. (ancient written vernacular Chinese) shop or store for a certain speciffic business

    镖局  ―  biāojú  ―  shop for security escort service

    藥局／药局  ―  yàojú  ―  pharmacy

14. trap; trick; gamble try; a complex, confusing event or situation

    騙局／骗局  ―  piànjú  ―  fraud, scam

    我乞光棍局去。 [Eastern Min, trad. and simp.]

    Nguāi ké̤ṳk-*guŏng-góng guŏh-kó̤ / [ŋuai³³ kʰyʔ²⁴⁻²¹ kuoŋ⁵⁵⁻⁵³ ^(k-)ŋouŋ²¹³ kuoʔ⁵⁻²¹ ^(kʰ-)ɔ²¹³] [Bàng-uâ-cê / IPA]

    I got tricked by a scammer.

    以身入局  ―  yǐshēnrùjú  ―  risk all of oneself to participate

15. feast; banquet; gathering

    酒局  ―  jiǔjú  ―  a banquet in which participants drink a huge amount of alcohol

16. chessboard
17. Classifier for instances of boardgames and ballgames: game ⇒ all nouns using this classifier
18. (Mainland China Hokkien) without fail; certainly; surely; definitely; inevitably
19. (Quanzhou and Xiamen Hokkien) interest; fun (said with 有 (ū) and 無 (bô))
20. (Zhangzhou Hokkien) worth; profit; relative benefit (said with 有 (ū) and 無 (bô))
21. (Zhangzhou Hokkien) narrow; cramped
22. (Zhangzhou Hokkien) to be limited; to be confined
23. (Zhangzhou Hokkien) to force; to compel
24. (tennis score) game
25. (civil aviation, slang) Civil Aviation Administration of China

    局方  ―  júfāng  ―  the side of CAAC

• (interest):

• (without fail):

• (narrow):

• (to limit):

• (to trick):

(Third grade kyōiku kanji)

1. bureau
2. board
3. office

• Go-on: ごく (goku)
• Kan-on: きょく (kyoku, Jōyō)^{←きよく (kyoku, historical)}
• Kun: つぼね (tsubone, 局)、しきる (shikiru)

• 美人局(つつもたせ) (tsutsumotase)
• 蜷局(どぐろ) (doguro)

• (Tokyo) つぼね [tsùbóné] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [t͡sɨbo̞ne̞]

局(つぼね) • (tsubone) 

1. a temporary room created by subdividing a larger room with curtains and screens
2. a private room in a palace or noble residence created by subdividing a larger room or gallery with curtains and screens

   Synonym: 曹司 (zōshi)

3. a lady-in-waiting or gentlewoman who lives in such a room
4. (Edo) a lady-in-waiting to a shōgun or daimyō
5. the tenement room used by a 局(つぼね)女(じょ)郎(ろう) (tsubone-jorō, “a low grade prostitute who works out of a small tenement room and charges by the hour”)
6. short for 局女郎 (tsubone-jorō)

局(つぼね) • (-tsubone) 

1. an honorific appended to the names of high-ranking women

From Middle Chinese 局 (MC gjowk).

• (Tokyo) きょく [kyóꜜkù] (Atamadaka – [1])
• IPA^(key): [kʲo̞kɯ̟]

局(きょく) • (kyoku) ^{←きよく (kyoku)?}

1. bureau, department
2. channel (such as on television)

局(きょく) • (-kyoku) ^{←きよく (-kyoku)?}

1. counter for buildings or operators suffixed with 局(きょく) (kyoku) (e.g. 郵(ゆう)便(びん)局(きょく) (yūbin-kyoku, “post office”), テレビ局(きょく) (terebi-kyoku, “television station”))
   • 2019 February 28, “＜平(へい)成(せい)　この日(ひ)、（番(ばん)外(がい)）＞郵(ゆう)便(びん)局(きょく)で「うるう日(び)」障(しょう)害(がい)゠平(へい)成(せい)12(じゅうに)年(ねん)2(に)月(がつ)29(にじゅうく)日(にち)（19(じゅうく)年(ねん)前(まえ)） Ａ(エー)Ｔ(ティー)Ｍ(エム)の電(でん)源(げん)入(はい)らず窓(まど)口(ぐち)対(たい)応(おう)”, in 佐(さ)賀(が)新(しん)聞(ぶん) [Saga Shimbun]‎^[1]:

     県(けん)内(ない)でも特(とく)定(てい)郵(ゆう)便(びん)局(きょく)など4(よん)局(きょく)で、業(ぎょう)務(む)開(かい)始(し)の午(ご)前(ぜん)8(はち)時(じ)から郵(ゆう)便(びん)貯(ちょ)金(きん)自(じ)動(どう)預(あずけ)払(ばらい)機(き)（A(エー)T(ティー)M(エム)）の電(でん)源(げん)が入(はい)らず、午(ご)後(ご)0(れい)時(じ)20(にじっ)分(ぷん)に復(ふっ)旧(きゅう)するまで、貯(ちょ)金(きん)の預(あず)け入(い)れは窓(まど)口(ぐち)で対(たい)応(おう)した。

     Kennai demo tokutei yūbin-kyoku nado yon-kyoku de, gyōmu kaishi no gozen hachiji kara yūbin chokin jidō azuke barai-ki (ētīemu) no dengen ga hairazu, gogo reiji nijippun ni fukkyū suru made, chokin no azukeire wa madoguchi de taiō shita.

     In the Prefecture, post office deposit automatic teller machines (ATMs) installed in four post offices including the Special Post Office couldn't turn on from 8 a.m. at starting operations and they handled depositing money work at windows until 12:20 a.m. when it had been restored.

2. counter for board games (e.g. chess, shogi or go)
   • 2019 November 25, “将(しょう)棋(ぎ)ユーチューバー、四(よ)段(だん)に勝(しょう)利(り)　あと２(に)勝(しょう)でプロ入(い)り”, in 朝(あさ)日(ひ)新(しん)聞(ぶん) [Asahi Shimbun]‎^[2], archived from the original on 2 December 2019:

     試(し)験(けん)は若(わか)手(て)棋(き)士(し) ５(ご)人(にん)と ５(ご)局(きょく)指(さ)し、 ３(さん)勝(しょう)で合(ごう)格(かく)する。

     Shiken wa wakate kishi go-nin to go-kyoku sashi, san-shō de gōkaku suru.

     In the examination, he will play five games against five young players and if he wins three games, he will pass the examination.

局(きょく) • (-kyoku) ^{←きよく (-kyoku)?}

1. bureau

• 郵(ゆう)便(びん)局(きょく) (yūbinkyoku, “post office”)
• 送(そう)信(しん)局(きょく) (sōshinkyoku, “relay station”)

• “^△局”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia]‎^[3] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2026

局 (eumhun 판 국 (pan guk))

1. hanja form^? of 국 (“bureau; department”)

• 방송국 (放送局, bangsongguk, “broadcasting station”)

局: Hán Việt readings: cục
局: Nôm readings: cộc, cục, cuộc, gục, ngúc

1. chữ Hán form of cuộc (“an office under a bộ (“ministry”)”)
2. chữ Nôm form of cuộc (“any large-scale, periodic event”)
   • 1820, 阮攸 [Nguyễn Du], compiled by Liễu Văn Đường, 傳翹 [Truyện Kiều], published 1866, line 3:

     𣦆(Trải)戈(qua)没(một)局(cuộc)𣷭(bể)橷(dâu)

     A turbulent mulberry-field-covered-by-sea period had passed.

3. chữ Nôm form of gục (“to lower (one's head); to bend down”)