破音字: 折、散、杆、将 and others?

[Altair]

I have several questions about alternative pronunciations and would appreciate it if someone could answer any or all of them. Perhaps, others know of similar characters that would be worth including in this thread.

My dictionaries have three pronunciations for 折, zhé, shé, and zhē. Zhé and shé are both listed with the meaning "break" (Zhé also has other meanings, such as fold), but the meanings are not distinguished. Is shé merely an alternative pronunciation when the meaning is "break"?

散 has two pronunciations sàn and sǎn. Can someone explain the difference in usage, because the meanings seem quite close. Which pronunciations are used for 散打 and 散手? Can "sàn" be used to describe intentionally loosening the strings on a package?

Can someone distinguish the two pronunciations of 杆 (gān and gǎn)? Also, Is there a clear difference between 杆, 竿, and 秆. Which is the appropriate character for a staff used in 武术? Which character and which pronunciation might be appropriate for the following 口诀: 顺水推周鞭做 gan?

Is there any logical reason why 将 is pronounced differently in 将军 (jiāngjūn) and 上将 (shàngjiàng)?

[yan420honggg]

1.i don't know 折can pronounce she3 untill i look up my dictionary.in fact ,you can ignore the meaning when it pronounce she3,it can be hardly used.if you want to use this word to express "break" ,just pronounce zhe2.

there's still difference between them but you need't know it well

2.san3 always describe something abstract,散文（prose）　，and san4 can be considered the action.

i don't know which　usage of 散　you want to use ,i will understand if you give the sentence

散打sna3 散手？i never heard of this word.

3.gan1 is a long stick,gan3 has the similar　meaning ,and you can know it usually made of bamboo

i think what you say is 棍,a weapon used in 武术

顺水推周鞭做 gan ，it should be 顺水推舟,and then i don't know

4.there isn't

[NYC]

I believe some readings are due to a noun/verb distinction. For example, for 将, jiang1 would be the verb so jiang1jun1 seems to originally been a phrase meaning "[he who] commands [the] army" while the second, jiang4, is a noun meaning just "commander" 将官，上将. In other cases the two words were assigned different characters. for example 花 hua1- flower, 华 hua2 - to flower, prosper. I am not a linguist but this seems logical to me.

[Altair]

Thanks for the responses.

1.i don't know 折can pronounce she3 untill i look up my dictionary.in fact ,you can ignore the meaning when it pronounce she3,it can be hardly used.if you want to use this word to express "break" ,just pronounce zhe2.

The varation they had was actually "she2," rather than "she3." If I can ignore this, except for things like 折本, I would be happy.

散打 and 散手 are terms I have seen in Taijiquan and other types of Wushu. They mean "sparring" or "practice fighting." I just saw that Wenlin does have the term 散手, but defines it as "karate." It gives san3 shou3 as the reading. I guess this usage is parallel to 散文 (san3 wen3), rather than 散步 (san4 bu4). I wonder what the reason is. Could it have to do with the tone of the following word?

gan1 is a long stick,gan3 has the similar　meaning ,and you can know it usually made of bamboo

i think what you say is 棍,a weapon used in 武术

顺水推周鞭做 gan ，it should be 顺水推舟,and then i don't know

推周 was indeed a typo. I am pretty sure that the meaning is that the "gan" will be used as the pole that will be used to push the boat. In English, the special term for this is called "punting." In the 口诀, the imagery is that the saber (刀) is whipped around the body and then used in a motion that is like pushing a boat along the water with a pole.

I believe some readings are due to a noun/verb distinction. For example, for 将, jiang1 would be the verb so jiang1jun1 seems to originally been a phrase meaning "[he who] commands [the] army" while the second, jiang4, is a noun meaning just "commander" 将官，上将.

This makes great sense. Thanks for the insight.

[Quest]

I guess this usage is parallel to 散文 (san3 wen3), rather than 散步 (san4 bu4). I wonder what the reason is. Could it have to do with the tone of the following word?

No it's like jiang1 and jiang4. 散 in 散文 is an adjective, but it's a verb in 散步.

[Altair]

Quest, thanks for clearing that up. It seems I am slow to pick up on the lesson. Now, if I could just figure out the tones for 散打. I guess I can see why the san3 of 散手 should be an adjective, but how about in 散打?

Here is some context:

第二届世界杯散打赛近日在广州鸣金收兵，在国家队主教练、省武管中心主任张根学的带领下，中国散打队取得了10枚金牌，其中来自西安体院的巾帼秦力子勇夺女子52公斤级冠军，为三秦武林界再传喜讯。

[Quest]

I would say san2da3 散打.

[Altair]

Thanks for your reply. This clears up a longstanding puzzle for me.