Han character 佒

It describes a body that cannot straighten. Chinese dictionary glosses also describe a hunched or physically bent posture.

Chinese dictionaries also record 佒 as an alternative written form of 仰, whose senses include looking upward or relying on someone. The surrounding sentence tells you which reading applies.

Where does 佒 come from?

A 543 entry in 玉篇, an early Chinese character dictionary, glosses 佒 as “the body cannot stretch.” The original dictionary is largely lost; the surviving text is a later revision, so 543 dates the dictionary record, not necessarily the character’s first appearance.

The written form joins 亻, the person component, to 央, which supplies the sound. Japanese dictionaries also list the kana readings あおぐ (“look upward”), あおむけ (“lie face-up”), and たのしむ (“enjoy oneself”). These are Japanese readings, not Mandarin ones.

A chapter of the classical Chinese philosophical work 莊子, 列禦寇, contains 偃佒. Dictionaries gloss the phrase as bending or adjusting yourself to follow others. Some references print 偃仰 instead; a Taiwanese variant dictionary labels 偃佒 doubtful and probably intended as 偃仰.

How do I type 佒?

Use pinyin yāng or yǎng, then choose 佒 from candidates.

In Mandarin pinyin, yāng has a high, level first tone; yǎng has a dipping third tone. Taiwan’s Ministry of Education dictionary gives the posture reading yāng, while other dictionaries also record yǎng for the posture or 仰-linked entry. A standard pinyin input method uses unmarked yang, so candidate selection may be needed.

Cangjie is a Chinese input method that maps character shapes to letter codes. On a Cangjie layout that supports 佒, enter OLBK.