漁

• Literal: To fish; the act of fishing.
• Extended/Metaphorical: To seek, seize, or pursue.
• Nominal: The trade or profession of fishing, a fishery, or a fisherman.
• Proper Name: Occurs as a surname.

Primarily functions as a verb. In nominal positions, it may refer to the activity (the fishery), the agent (the fisherman), or the industry (the trade).

When used in the sense of seeking or pursuing, this glyph implies an opportunistic or indirect approach—such as using a lure, trap, or casting a wide net—distinguishing it from the direct pursuit implied by 追 (to chase) or 求 (to seek).

• Fanqie reading: 語居

// Tang-period reading: //ngiu

• Semantic variant: 𩇗 (U+4C77)
• Simplified variant: 渔 (U+6E14)

In early manuscripts, be alert for shorthand or graphical distortions of the fish radical (魚) combined with the water radical (氵).