中人

Chinese

		middle; centre; within middle; centre; within; among; in; while (doing something); during; China; Chinese; hit (the mark)	man; person; people
simp. and trad. (中人)		中	人
anagram		人中

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): zhōngrén

  (Zhuyin): ㄓㄨㄥ ㄖㄣˊ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): zung¹ jan⁴
• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): chûng-ngìn
• Eastern Min (BUC): dṳ̆ng-ìng
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): tiong-lâng / tiong-lîn / tiong-jîn

  (Teochew, Peng'im): dong¹ nang⁵

• Wu (Northern, Wugniu): ¹tson-gnin₆ / ¹tson-gnin₂

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: zhōngrén
    • Zhuyin: ㄓㄨㄥ ㄖㄣˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: jhongrén
    • Wade–Giles: chung¹-jên²
    • Yale: jūng-rén
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: jongren
    • Palladius: чжунжэнь (čžunžɛnʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʈ͡ʂʊŋ⁵⁵ ʐən³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: zung¹ jan⁴
    • Yale: jūng yàhn
    • Cantonese Pinyin: dzung¹ jan⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: zung¹ yen⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡sʊŋ⁵⁵ jɐn²¹/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: chûng-ngìn
    • Hakka Romanization System: zung^ˊ ngin^ˇ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: zung¹ ngin²
    • Sinological IPA: /t͡suŋ²⁴ ŋin¹¹/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: dṳ̆ng-ìng
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tyŋ⁵⁵ ^(Ø-)ŋiŋ⁵³/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou, General Taiwanese, Xiamen, Zhangzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tiong-lâng
    • Tâi-lô: tiong-lâng
    • Phofsit Daibuun: dionglaang
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /tiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² laŋ¹³/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /tiɔŋ³³ laŋ²⁴/
    • IPA (Xiamen): /tiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² laŋ²⁴/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /tiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ laŋ²³/
    • IPA (Taipei): /tiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ laŋ²⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou, Taipei)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tiong-lîn
    • Tâi-lô: tiong-lîn
    • Phofsit Daibuun: diongliin
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /tiɔŋ³³ lin²⁴/
    • IPA (Taipei): /tiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ lin²⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Kaohsiung)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tiong-jîn
    • Tâi-lô: tiong-jîn
    • Phofsit Daibuun: diongjiin
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /tiɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ zin²³/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: dong¹ nang⁵
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: tong nâng
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /toŋ³³⁻²³ naŋ⁵⁵/
• Wu
  • (Northern: Shanghai)
    • Wugniu: ¹tson-gnin₆
    • MiniDict: tson^平 nyin^去
    • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ¹tson-nyin₃
    • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /t͡soŋ⁵⁵ n̠ʲin²¹/
  • (Northern: Suzhou)
    • Wugniu: ¹tson-gnin₂
    • MiniDict: tson^平 nyin^平
    • Sinological IPA (Suzhou): /t͡soŋ⁴⁴ n̠ʲin/

---

• Middle Chinese: trjuwng nyin

Rime
Character	中	人
Reading #	1/2	1/1
Initial (聲)	知 (9)	日 (38)
Final (韻)	東 (2)	眞 (43)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	III	III
Fanqie	陟弓切	如鄰切
Baxter	trjuwng	nyin
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ʈɨuŋ/	/ȵiɪn/
Pan Wuyun	/ʈiuŋ/	/ȵin/
Shao Rongfen	/ȶiuŋ/	/ȵʑjen/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ʈuwŋ/	/ȵin/
Li Rong	/ȶiuŋ/	/ȵiĕn/
Wang Li	/ȶĭuŋ/	/ȵʑĭĕn/
Bernhard Karlgren	/ȶi̯uŋ/	/ȵʑi̯ĕn/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	zhōng	rén
Expected Cantonese Reflex	zung1	jan4

• Old Chinese

  (Baxter–Sagart): /*truŋ  ni[ŋ]/

  (Zhengzhang): /*tuŋ  njin/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	中	人
Reading #	1/2	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	zhōng	rén
Middle Chinese	‹ trjuwng ›	‹ nyin ›
Old Chinese	/*truŋ/	/*ni[ŋ]/
English	center	(other) person
Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p; * Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary.

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	中	人
Reading #	1/2	1/1
No.	17407	10800
Phonetic component	中	人
Rime group	終	眞
Rime subdivision	0	1
Corresponding MC rime	中	仁
Old Chinese	/*tuŋ/	/*njin/

Noun

中人

1. middleman; go-between; intermediary; mediator
2. (literary) person of average ability; average person

   • 子曰：「中人以上，可以語上也；中人以下，不可以語上也。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     子曰：「中人以上，可以语上也；中人以下，不可以语上也。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Zǐyuē: “Zhōngrén yǐshàng, kěyǐ yù shàng yě; zhōngrén yǐxià, bùkěyǐ yù shàng yě.” [Pinyin]

     The Master said, "To those whose talents are above mediocrity, the highest subjects may be announced. To those who are below mediocrity, the highest subjects may not be announced."

   • 材能不及中人，非有仲尼、墨翟之賢，陶朱、猗頓之富。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     材能不及中人，非有仲尼、墨翟之贤，陶朱、猗顿之富。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: late 1st century BCE, Jia Yi (賈誼), On the Crimes of Qin (《過秦論》)

     Cái néng bùjí zhōngrén, fēi yǒu Zhòngní, Mò Dí zhī xián, Táo Zhū, Yī Dùn zhī fù. [Pinyin]

     [His] talent and skills were not above those of the average person. He had neither the wisdom paralleling Confucius or Mozi, nor the resources of a Master Tao Zhu or a Yi Dun.

Synonyms

• (middleman):

edit

• 中介 (zhōngjiè) (chiefly mainland China)
• 中間人 / 中间人 (zhōngjiānrén)
• 九八人 (Hokkien, dated)
• 代理人 (dàilǐrén)
• 仲介 (zhòngjiè) (chiefly Taiwan)
• 伢子 (yázi) (Northeastern Mandarin, Lanyin Mandarin, Jin)
• 市儈 / 市侩 (shìkuài) (archaic)
• 拍空仔 (Singapore Hokkien)
• 掮客 (qiánkè)
• 牙人 (yárén) (archaic)
• 牙儈 / 牙侩 (yákuài) (archaic)
• 牙子 (yázi) (archaic)
• 牙郎 (yáláng) (archaic)
• 牽仔 / 牵仔 (Hokkien)
• 當中人 / 当中人 (⁵taon-tson-gnin) (Wu)
• 經紀 / 经纪 (jīngjì)
• 經紀人 / 经纪人 (jīngjìrén)
• 說合人 / 说合人 (sueh^4-3 hah⁵ reng¹) (Jin)

 

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (中人):

• → Japanese: 中人(ちゅうにん) (chūnin)
• → Korean: 중인(中人) (jung'in)
• → Vietnamese: trung nhân (中人)

Japanese

Kanji in this term
中	人
ちゅう Grade: 1	にん Grade: 1
on'yomi

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) ちゅうにん [chùúníń] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [t͡ɕɨːɲ̟ĩɴ]

Noun

中(ちゅう)人(にん) • (chūnin) 

1. an age category for differentiating entrance fees, for ages higher than 小人 and lower than 大人.
2. go-between, mediator

Korean

Hanja in this term
中	人

Noun

中人 • (jung'in) (hangeul 중인)

1. hanja form^? of 중인