波

波 U+6CE2, 波 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-6CE2 ← 泡 [U+6CE1] CJK Unified Ideographs 泣 → [U+6CE3]

波 (Kangxi radical 85, 水+5, 8 strokes, cangjie input 水木竹水 (EDHE), four-corner 3414₇, composition ⿰氵皮)

• 啵, 𨨏, 菠, 箥, 婆, 㨇, 碆, 錃

• Japanese: は (ha)

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 617, character 8
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 17308
• Dae Jaweon: page 1012, character 6
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 3, page 1597, character 7
• Unihan data for U+6CE2

Phono-semantic compound (形聲 / 形声, OC *paːl): semantic 氵 (“water”) + phonetic 皮 (OC *bral, “surface”).

simp. and trad.		波

“wave; undulation”

Debated.

STEDT and Starostin derive it from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *r/m-ba (“wave; ripple”). Cognate with Tibetan རྦ (rba), དབའ (dba', “wave”).

Schuessler (2007) notes a mismatch of the vowels in the above comparanda, and instead posits a root *paj (“slanted; not level”), also subsuming 陂 (OC *pral, “slope; slanting”).

Wang (1982) relates it to 播 (OC *paːls, “to winnow”), 簸 (OC *paːlʔ, *paːls, “to winnow”).

波

1. wave; breaker
2. undulation
3. (physics) wave

   聲波／声波  ―  shēngbō  ―  sound wave

   微波  ―  wēibō  ―  microwave

4. (Sichuanese, including Chongqing and Neijiang) elderly person
5. short for 波蘭／波兰 (Bōlán, “Poland”)
6. short for 波斯 (Bōsī, “Persia”)
7. a surname
8. used in 波羅／波罗 (bōluó), alternative form of 菠蘿 / 菠萝 (bōluó)
9. Used in transcription.

   波希米亞／波希米亚  ―  Bōxīmǐyà  ―  Bohemia

   希波克拉底  ―  Xībōkèlādǐ  ―  Hippocrates

   波茨坦  ―  Bōcítǎn  ―  Potsdam

• (wave): 波動／波动 (bōdòng)

simp. and trad.		波

Borrowed from English ball.

波

1. (Cantonese, Leizhou Min, Hainanese) ball (Classifier: 個／个 c; 粒 c)
2. (Cantonese) ball game, especially football (Classifier: 場／场 c)
3. (Cantonese) team in a ball game, especially football (Classifier: 隊／队 c)
4. (Cantonese) goal (act of scoring with the ball) in a ball game, especially football (Classifier: 球 c)
5. (Cantonese) automotive gear, gearbox; transmission

   低波 [Cantonese]  ―  dai¹ bo¹ [Jyutping]  ―  low gear

6. (Hong Kong Cantonese) typhoon signal (issued by the Hong Kong Observatory)

   八號波／八号波 [Hong Kong Cantonese]  ―  baat³ hou⁶ bo¹ [Jyutping]  ―  Typhoon Signal No. 8

7. (chiefly Hong Kong Cantonese, figurative) boob; breast (Classifier: 對／对 c; 個／个 c)

   波大冇腦／波大冇脑 [Hong Kong Cantonese]  ―  bo¹ daai⁶ mou⁵ nou⁵ [Jyutping]  ―  with big boobs but brainless

   • 1999 May 21, 含撚, “扯撚晒旗”, in hk.talk.sex‎^[1] (Usenet):

     我o個班有個同學(男仔)有波有籮 [Cantonese, trad.]
     我o个班有个同学(男仔)有波有箩 [Cantonese, simp.]

     ngo⁵ go² baan¹ jau⁵ go³ tung⁴ hok⁶ (naam⁴ zai²) jau⁵ bo¹ jau⁵ lo¹ [Jyutping]

     There is a (male) schoolmate in my class who got boobs and bum

8. (Hong Kong Cantonese) ball; dance party (Classifier: 個／个 c)
9. (Hong Kong Cantonese, figuratively, always with the classifier) responsibility (Classifier: 個／个 c)

• (ball):

• (automotive gear): (Mandarin) 排擋／排挡 (páidǎng), 擋／挡 (dǎng)
• (breast):

simp. and trad.		波
alternative forms		罷／罢

Likely also from 罷／罢 (bà) and 夫 (OC *ba, “is it not?”), itself a contraction of 不乎. See 吧 (ba).

波

1. (early vernacular) Emphatic final particle; used at the end of a sentence to indicate a suggested action: why don't you ...; let us ...
   • Qing dynasty, 洪昇, 长生殿, volume 10:

     客官，你一面吃酒，我一面告诉你波。 [MSC, trad. and simp.]

     Kèguān, nǐ yīmiàn chījiǔ, wǒ yīmiàn gàosù nǐ bō. [Pinyin]

     Esteemed guest, why don't you drink a bit of wine while I tell you [about it].

2. (early vernacular) Used at the end of a sentence used to indicate disapproving incredulousness.

   • 孩兒，你教我怎生說波！ [Written Vernacular Chinese, trad.]
     孩儿，你教我怎生说波！ [Written Vernacular Chinese, simp.]

     From: Yuan Dynasty, Guan Hanqing, The Injustice to Dou E

     Hái'ér, nǐ jiào wǒ zěnshēng shuō bō! [Pinyin]

     O my child, what am I to say! (literally, “what would you have me say!”)

3. (early vernacular) A meaningless sentence-medial particle
   • Yuan dynasty, 朱凯, 昊天塔, volume 4:

     他兄弟每多死少波生 [MSC, trad. and simp.]

     tā xiōngdì měi duō sǐ shào bō shēng [Pinyin]

     Out of all his brothers, most die; not many live.

• Usage 3 is most often seen in Yuan dynasty zaju dramas.

• (imperative): (Hokkien) 好 (hó), 乎 (hohⁿ / hôⁿ / hōⁿ / hoⁿ)

For pronunciation and definitions of 波 – see 簸 (“to winnow; to bump; to jerk; to jolt”). (This character is the second-round simplified form of 簸).

Notes: Simplified Chinese is mainly used in Mainland China, Malaysia, and Singapore. Traditional Chinese is mainly used in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

• “波”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎^[2], 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–

(Third grade kyōiku kanji)

• Go-on: は (ha, Jōyō)
• Kan-on: は (ha, Jōyō)
• Kun: なみ (nami, 波, Jōyō)
• Nanori: ぽ (po, 波)

• 波蘭(ポーランド) (Pōrando)

Kanji in this term
波
なみ Grade: 3
kun'yomi

Alternative spellings
浪 (uncommon) 涛 (rare)

⟨nami₁⟩ → /namʲi/ → /nami/

From Old Japanese 浪 (nami₁), from Proto-Japonic *nami.

• (Tokyo) なみ [nàmíꜜ] (Odaka – [2])^[1][2]
• IPA^(key): [na̠mʲi]

波(なみ) • (nami) 

1. a wave

   そのサーファーは一番(いちばん)大(おお)きな波(なみ)に乗(の)った。

   Sono sāfā wa ichiban ōkina nami ni notta.

   That surfer rode the biggest wave.

• 波(なみ)形(がた) (namigata)
• 波(なみ)線(せん) (namisen)
• 津(つ)波(なみ) (tsunami)

波(なみ) • (Nami) 

1. a female given name

Kanji in this term
波
は Grade: 3
on'yomi

/pa/ → /ɸa/ → /ha/

From Middle Chinese 波 (MC pa).

• IPA^(key): [ha̠]

波(は) • (ha) 

1. wave

Kanji in this term
波
ぽ Grade: 3
irregular

Short form of ateji (当(あ)て字(じ)) spelling 波蘭 (Pōrando).

• IPA^(key): [po̞]

波(ぽ) • (Po) 

1. short for ポーランド (Pōrando): Poland

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

From Middle Chinese 波 (MC pa). Recorded as Middle Korean 파 (pha) (Yale: pha) in Hunmong Jahoe (訓蒙字會 / 훈몽자회), 1527.

波 (eumhun 물결 파 (mulgyeol pa))

1. hanja form^? of 파 (“wave, undulation”)

• 국제퇴계학회 대구경북지부 (國際退溪學會 大邱慶北支部) (2007). Digital Hanja Dictionary, 전자사전／電子字典. [4]

波: Hán Nôm readings: ba

波

1. chữ Hán form of ba (“(only in compounds) wave; ripple”)