# 白駒過隙
## Chinese

| | | white colt; person of intelligence and integrity; recluse | to cross; to go over; (experienced action marker)to cross; to go over; (experienced action marker); to pass; to celebrate; to live; to get along; excessively; too- | crack; occasion for dislike |
| trad. (白駒過隙) | trad. (白駒過隙) | 白駒 | 過 | 隙 |
| simp. (白驹过隙) | simp. (白驹过隙) | 白驹 | 过 | 隙 |
| alternative forms | alternative forms | 白駒過郤／白驹过郤 | 白駒過郤／白驹过郤 | 白駒過郤／白驹过郤 |
| Literally: “(the amount of time it takes for) a white colt to pass by a crevice”. |||||

### Etymology

From Zhuangzi:
    人生天地之間，若白駒之過郤，忽然而已。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]人生天地之间，若白驹之过郤，忽然而已。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]From: Zhuangzi, circa 3rd – 2nd centuries BCERénshēng tiāndì zhī jiān, ruò báijū zhī guò xì, hūrán ér yǐ. [Pinyin]That human beings live between heaven and earth is similar to a white colt's bolting past a crevice; it is but an instant.

### Pronunciation

* Mandarin
    (Pinyin): báijūguòxì
    (Zhuyin): ㄅㄞˊ ㄐㄩ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄒㄧˋ
* Cantonese (Jyutping): baak$^6$ keoi$^1$ gwo$^3$ kwik$^1$
* Mandarin
** (Standard Chinese)
*** Hanyu Pinyin: báijūguòxì
*** Zhuyin: ㄅㄞˊ ㄐㄩ ㄍㄨㄛˋ ㄒㄧˋ
*** Tongyong Pinyin: báijyuguòsì
*** Wade–Giles: pai$^2$-chü$^1$-kuo$^4$-hsi$^4$
*** Yale: bái-jyū-gwò-syì
*** Gwoyeu Romatzyh: bairjiuguohshih
*** Palladius: байцзюйгоси (bajczjujgosi)
*** Sinological IPA : /paɪ̯³⁵ t͡ɕy⁵⁵ ku̯ɔ⁵¹⁻⁵³ ɕi⁵¹/
* Cantonese
** (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
*** Jyutping: baak$^6$ keoi$^1$ gwo$^3$ kwik$^1$
*** Yale: baahk kēui gwo kwīk
*** Cantonese Pinyin: baak$^9$ koey$^1$ gwo$^3$ kwik$^7$
*** Guangdong Romanization: bag$^6$ kêu$^1$ guo$^3$ kuig$^1$
*** Sinological IPA : /paːk̚² kʰɵy̯⁵⁵ kʷɔː³³ kʷʰɪk̚⁵/
* Middle Chinese: baek kju kwa|kwaH khjaek
Rime :
| Character | 白 | 駒 | 過 | 過 | 隙 |
| Reading # | 1/1 | 1/1 | 1/2 | 2/2 | 1/1 |
| Initial (聲) | 並 (3) | 見 (28) | 見 (28) | 見 (28) | 溪 (29) |
| Final (韻) | 陌 (113) | 虞 (24) | 戈 (95) | 戈 (95) | 陌 (115) |
| Tone (調) | Checked (Ø) | Level (Ø) | Level (Ø) | Departing (H) | Checked (Ø) |
| Openness (開合) | Open | Closed | Closed | Closed | Open |
| Division (等) | II | III | I | I | III |
| Fanqie | 傍陌切 | 舉朱切 | 古禾切 | 古卧切 | 綺戟切 |
| Baxter | baek | kju | kwa | kwaH | khjaek |
| Reconstructions ||||||
| Zhengzhang Shangfang | /bˠæk̚/ | /kɨo/ | /kuɑ/ | /kuɑ$^H$/ | /kʰˠiæk̚/ |
| Pan Wuyun | /bᵚak̚/ | /kio/ | /kuɑ/ | /kuɑ$^H$/ | /kʰᵚiak̚/ |
| Shao Rongfen | /bak̚/ | /kio/ | /kuɑ/ | /kuɑ$^H$/ | /kʰiak̚/ |
| Edwin Pulleyblank | /baɨjk̚/ | /kuə̆/ | /kwa/ | /kwa$^H$/ | /kʰiajk̚/ |
| Li Rong | /bɐk̚/ | /kio/ | /kuɑ/ | /kuɑ$^H$/ | /kʰiɐk̚/ |
| Wang Li | /bɐk̚/ | /kĭu/ | /kuɑ/ | /kuɑ$^H$/ | /kʰĭɐk̚/ |
| Bernard Karlgren | /bʱɐk̚/ | /ki̯u/ | /kuɑ/ | /kuɑ$^H$/ | /kʰiɐk̚/ |
| Expected Mandarin Reflex | bó | jū | guō | guò | qi |
| Expected Cantonese Reflex | bak$^6$ | geoi$^1$ | gwo$^1$ | gwo$^3$ | hik$^1$ |
* Old Chinese
    (Zhengzhang): /*braːɡ ko kloːl|kloːls kʰraɡ/
Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014) :
| Character | 白 | 過 | 過 | 過 | 隙 |
| Reading # | 1/1 | 1/3 | 2/3 | 3/3 | 1/1 |
| Modern Beijing (Pinyin) | bái | guō | guō | guò | xì |
| Middle Chinese | ‹ bæk › | ‹ kwa › | ‹ kwa › | ‹ kwa$^H$ › | ‹ khjæk › |
| Old Chinese | /*bˁrak/ | /*Cə.kʷˁaj/ | /*kʷˁaj/ | /*kʷˁaj-s/ | /*[k]ʰrak/ |
| English | white | tough, fibrous (vegetables) | to pass | to pass; transgress | crack (n.) |
| Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p; * Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary. ||||||
Zhengzhang system (2003) :
| Character | 白 | 駒 | 過 | 過 | 隙 |
| Reading # | 1/1 | 1/1 | 1/2 | 2/2 | 1/1 |
| No. | 207 | 7094 | 4362 | 4371 | 13441 |
| Phonetic component | 白 | 句 | 冎 | 冎 | 隙 |
| Rime group | 鐸 | 侯 | 歌 | 歌 | 鐸 |
| Rime subdivision | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Corresponding MC rime | 白 | 拘 | 戈 | | 隙 |
| Old Chinese | /*braːɡ/ | /*ko/ | /*kloːl/ | /*kloːls/ | /*kʰraɡ/ |
| Notes | | | | | 本象山隙縫透射日光， 或省阜 |

### Idiom

白駒過隙
* swiftness of the lapse of time; fleeting of time; in the twinkling of an eye

#### Descendants

* → Korean: 백구과극(白駒過隙) (baekgugwageuk)
* → Vietnamese: bạch câu quá khích (白駒過隙)
Others:
* Japanese: 白駒(はっく)隙(げき)を過(す)ぐ (hakku geki o sugu)