功 gōng
noun
: meritorious deed or service; achievement; result; service; accomplishment; work (physics)
功 | いさお isao
noun | Na-adjective
: distinguished service; meritorious service
功 | こう kou
noun
: merit; success; meritorious deed
: achievement; accumulated experience
く ku
功夫 gong1fu: skill; art; kung fu; labor; effort
[くふう kufuu: scheme; device; scheming; devising; figuring out; coming up with; solving ingeniously
: dedication to spiritual improvement (esp. through Zen meditation)]
功能 gong1neng2: function; capability
[こうのう kounou: effect; efficacy; virtue; benefit]
功德 gong1 de2: achievements and virtue
[功徳 | くどく kudoku: pious act]
功勞[劳] gong1lao2: contribution; meritorious service; credit
功課[课] gong1ke4: homework; task; lesson
功利 gong1li4: utility
[こうり kouri]
成功 cheng2gong1: success [せいこう seikou: success; hit]
用功 yong4gong1: diligent; industrious (in one’s studies); to study hard; to make great effort
氣[气]功 qi4gong1: qigong, a system of deep breathing exercises
[気功 | きこう kikou: breathing exercise; breath control; spirit cultivation; chi kung; qigong]
武功 wu3gong1: Martial art; military achievement (e.g. number of enemy heads cut off)
[ぶこう bukou: military exploits]
做功 zuo4gong1: to act (in opera); stage business
Japanese expression / idiom
成功を収める | せいこうをおさめる seikou o osameru
: to achieve success
怪我の功名 | けがのこうみょう kega no koumyou
: fortunate error; lucky break; fluke
九仞の功を一簣に虧く | きゅうじんのこうをいっきにかく kyuujin no kou o ikki ni kaku
: to fail one step short of great success; to fall at the last hurdle
失敗は成功の基 | しっぱいはせいこうのもと shippai wa seikou no moto
: failure teaches success; failure is a stepping-stone to success
Chinese idiom
功德無[无]量 gong1 de2 wu2 liang4
: no end of virtuous achievements; boundless beneficence
功虧一簣 [功亏一篑] gong1 kui1 yi1 kui4
: lit. to ruin the enterprise for the sake of one basketful; to fail through lack of a final effort; to spoil the ship for a ha’penny worth of tar
大功告成 da4 gong1 gao4 cheng2
: successfully accomplished (project or goal); to be highly successful
徒勞無功 [徒劳无功] tu2 lao2 wu2 gong1
: to work to no avail
無功不受祿 [无功不受禄] wu2 gong1 bu4 shou4 lu4
: Don’t get a reward if it’s not deserved
不求有功，但求無過[无过] bu4 qiu2 you3 gong1 , dan4 qiu2 wu2 guo4
: special achievement not required, just no hyperactive blunders; not hoping to acquire merit, just avoiding mistakes. Take it easy and keep your nose clean
只要功夫深，鐵杵磨成針 [只要功夫深，铁杵磨成针]
zhi3 yao4 gong1 fu5 shen1 , tie3 chu3 mo2 cheng2 zhen1
: If you work at it hard enough, you can grind an iron bar into a needle. To grind an iron bar down to a fine needle; fig. to persevere in a difficult task; to study diligently
失敗[败]是成功之母 shi1 bai4 shi4 cheng2 gong1 zhi1 mu3
: Failure is the mother of success
会意 Associative Compound .
Power 力 (li4: power) through
work 工 (gong1: work)
形声 Pictophonetic.
力 (li4: power) suggests the meaning while
工 (gong1: work) provides the sound.
Examples:
他的功夫還不賴。
ta de gong1fu hai bu4lai4.
His kung fu skills are not bad at all.
Resources: Chinese Dictionary | Japanese Dictionary
