寅

寅 (Kangxi radical 40, 宀+8, 11 strokes, cangjie input 十一中金 (JMLC), four-corner 3080₆, composition ⿱宀⿳一由八)

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 288, character 5
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 7204
• Dae Jaweon: page 570, character 1
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 2, page 936, character 16
• Unihan data for U+5BC5

3rd earthly branch

Smith (2011) suggests that this branch denoted the "bending, stretching, drawn out" moon phase, i.e. the waning half-moon with a concave flat edge. Smith points to

• the possible relation between 寅 (OC *lin) and 引 (OC *linʔ, “to stretch, to draw (a bow)”) (noted earlier by James Mellon Menzies); and
• that both graphs 寅 and 引 were used interchangeably as phonophorics for 螾 (OC *lin, *linʔ) and 蚓 (OC *linʔ), meaning "worm".

Association with the tiger was possibly arbitrary, just like 辰 (chén) with the dragon (see Ferlus, 2013)

寅

1. (Classical) to revere, respect

   • 同寅協恭和衷哉！ [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     同寅协恭和衷哉！ [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Book of Documents, circa 4^th – 3^rd century BCE

     Tóng yín xié gōng hé zhōng zāi! [Pinyin]

     When (sovereign and ministers show) a common reverence and united respect for these, lo! the moral nature (of the people) is made harmonious.

2. third of twelve earthly branches (十二支)
3. tiger (虎) of Chinese zodiac

• (Chinese earthly branches) 地支 (dìzhī); 子, 丑 (chǒu), 寅 (yín), 卯 (mǎo), 辰 (chén), 巳 (sì), 午 (wǔ), 未 (wèi), 申 (shēn), 酉 (yǒu), 戌, 亥 (hài) ^{(Category: zh:Chinese earthly branches)}

• “寅”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎, 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–
• “Entry #7161”, in 臺灣閩南語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwan Minnan] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2023.

(“Jinmeiyō” kanji used for names)

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

• Go-on: いん (in)
• Kan-on: いん (in)
• Kun: とら (tora, 寅)
• Nanori: とも (tomo); のぶ (nobu)

From 虎 (tora, “tiger”).

• (Tokyo) とら [tòrá] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [to̞ɾa̠]

• Homophone: 虎

寅(とら) • (Tora) 

1. the Tiger, the third of the twelve Earthly Branches

   Hypernyms: 十二支, 地支

   Coordinate terms: 子, 丑, 寅, 卯, 辰, 巳, 午, 未, 申, 酉, 戌, 亥

From Middle Chinese 寅 (yin).

寅(いん) • (In) 

1. the Tiger, the third of the twelve Earthly Branches

   Hypernyms: 十二支, 地支

   Coordinate terms: 子, 丑, 寅, 卯, 辰, 巳, 午, 未, 申, 酉, 戌, 亥

寅 • (in, i) (hangeul 인, 이, revised in, i, McCune–Reischauer in, i)

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

寅: Hán Nôm readings: dần

1. chữ Hán form of Dần (“third of the twelve earthly branches”).

   Hypernyms: 地支, 十二支

   Coordinate terms: 子, 丑, 寅, 卯, 辰, 巳, 午, 未, 申, 酉, 戌, 亥