談空說有

Chinese

		to speak; to talk; to converse to speak; to talk; to converse; to chat; to discuss; surname	emptied; leisure; air emptied; leisure; air; sky; empty; in vain	to speak; to say; persuade (politically)	to have; there is; there are to have; there is; there are; to exist; to be
trad. (談空說有)		談	空	說	有
simp. (谈空说有)		谈	空	说	有

Etymology

From Su Shi's poem 《寄吳德仁兼簡陳季常》 ("Poem sent for Wu Deren and for Chen Jichang as well") (translation from Qiu, 2013^[1]):

• 龍丘居士亦可憐，
  談空說有夜不眠，
  忽聞河東獅子吼，
  柱杖落手心茫然。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]

  ---

  龙丘居士亦可怜，
  谈空说有夜不眠，
  忽闻河东狮子吼，
  柱杖落手心茫然。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

  Lóngqiū jūshì yì kělián,
  Tán kōng shuō yǒu yè bùmián,
  Hū wén hédōng shīzǐ hǒu,
  Zhù zhàng luò shǒu xīn mángrán. [Pinyin]

  The lay practitioner of Dragon Hill is also pitiful,
  he stays up discoursing on emptiness and fullness all night long.
  Suddenly he hears a lion’s roar from east-of-the river,
  the cane drops from his hand, he is at a loss.

Originally meaning "to discuss non-existence and existence → to discuss Buddhist doctrines", it then underwent semantic pejoration to "gossip, idle talk, empty talk".

Pronunciation

Rime
Character	談	空	說	有
Reading #	1/1	1/2	3/3	1/1
Initial (聲)	定 (7)	溪 (29)	書 (26)	云 (35)
Final (韻)	談 (143)	東 (1)	薛 (82)	尤 (136)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Level (Ø)	Checked (Ø)	Rising (X)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open	Closed	Open
Division (等)	I	I	III	III
Fanqie	徒甘切	苦紅切	失爇切	云久切
Baxter	dam	khuwng	sywet	hjuwX
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/dɑm/	/kʰuŋ/	/ɕiuᴇt̚/	/ɦɨuX/
Pan Wuyun	/dɑm/	/kʰuŋ/	/ɕʷiɛt̚/	/ɦiuX/
Shao Rongfen	/dɑm/	/kʰuŋ/	/ɕjuæt̚/	/ɣiəuX/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/dam/	/kʰəwŋ/	/ɕwiat̚/	/ɦuwX/
Li Rong	/dɑm/	/kʰuŋ/	/ɕiuɛt̚/	/ɣiuX/
Wang Li	/dɑm/	/kʰuŋ/	/ɕĭuɛt̚/	/ɣĭəuX/
Bernard Karlgren	/dʱɑm/	/kʰuŋ/	/ɕi̯wɛt̚/	/i̯ə̯uX/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	tán	kōng	shuo	yǒu
Expected Cantonese Reflex	taam4	hung1	syut3	jau5

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): tánkōngshuōyǒu

  (Zhuyin): ㄊㄢˊ ㄎㄨㄥ ㄕㄨㄛ ㄧㄡˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): taam⁴ hung¹ syut³ jau⁵

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: tánkōngshuōyǒu
    • Zhuyin: ㄊㄢˊ ㄎㄨㄥ ㄕㄨㄛ ㄧㄡˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: tánkongshuoyǒu
    • Wade–Giles: tʻan²-kʻung¹-shuo¹-yu³
    • Yale: tán-kūng-shwō-yǒu
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: tarnkongshuoyeou
    • Palladius: танькуншою (tanʹkunšoju)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tʰän³⁵ kʰʊŋ⁵⁵ ʂu̯ɔ⁵⁵ joʊ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: taam⁴ hung¹ syut³ jau⁵
    • Yale: tàahm hūng syut yáuh
    • Cantonese Pinyin: taam⁴ hung¹ syt⁸ jau⁵
    • Guangdong Romanization: tam⁴ hung¹ xud³ yeo⁵
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tʰaːm²¹ hʊŋ⁵⁵ syːt̚³ jɐu̯¹³/

---

• Middle Chinese: dam khuwng sywet hjuwX

Idiom

談空說有

1. gossip, idle talk, empty talk

References

1. Qiu, Yanting (2013) Plot Evolution and Character Transformation in Shihou ji (The Lioness’s Roar) On the Traditional Kunqu Stage (MA)‎, University of British Columbia, page 15