代理

Chinese

		substitute; replace; generation substitute; replace; generation; dynasty; geological era; era; age; period	to manage; to heed; to put in order to manage; to heed; to put in order; reason; logic; science; inner principle or structure
simp. and trad. (代理)		代	理

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): dàilǐ

  (Zhuyin): ㄉㄞˋ ㄌㄧˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): doi⁶ lei⁵

• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): thoi-lî

  (Hailu, HRS): toi^˖ li^ˋ

• Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing): dai⁵ li³
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): tāi-lí

  (Teochew, Peng'im): toi³ li²

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: dàilǐ
    • Zhuyin: ㄉㄞˋ ㄌㄧˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: dàilǐ
    • Wade–Giles: tai⁴-li³
    • Yale: dài-lǐ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: daylii
    • Palladius: дайли (dajli)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /taɪ̯⁵¹ li²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: doi⁶ lei⁵
    • Yale: doih léih
    • Cantonese Pinyin: doi⁶ lei⁵
    • Guangdong Romanization: doi⁶ léi⁵
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tɔːi̯²² lei̯¹³/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: thoi-lî
    • Hakka Romanization System: toi li^ˊ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: toi⁴ li¹
    • Sinological IPA: /tʰoi̯⁵⁵ li²⁴/
  • (Hailu, incl. Zhudong)
    • Hakka Romanization System: toi^˖ li^ˋ
    • Sinological IPA: /tʰoi³³ li⁵³/
• Puxian Min
  • (Putian)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: dai⁵ li³
    • Báⁿ-uā-ci̍: dāi-lî
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tai¹¹ li⁴⁵³/
  • (Xianyou)
    • Pouseng Ping'ing: dai⁵ li³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tai²¹ li³³²/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tāi-lí
    • Tâi-lô: tāi-lí
    • Phofsit Daibuun: daixlie
    • Sinological IPA (Xiamen): /tai²²⁻²¹ li⁵³/
    • Sinological IPA (Quanzhou): /tai⁴¹⁻²² li⁵⁵⁴/
    • Sinological IPA (Zhangzhou): /tai²²⁻²¹ li⁵³/
    • Sinological IPA (Taipei): /tai³³⁻¹¹ li⁵³/
    • Sinological IPA (Kaohsiung): /tai³³⁻²¹ li⁴¹/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: toi³ li²
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: thòi lí
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /tʰoi²¹³⁻⁵⁵ li⁵²⁻²¹/

Verb

代理

1. to act as an agent; to be a representative; to act as a proxy

Synonyms

• (dated) 署理 (shǔlǐ)

Noun

代理

1. agent; representative; proxy

   獨家代理／独家代理  ―  dújiā dàilǐ  ―  sole agency

Derived terms

• 代理人 (dàilǐrén)
• 代理商 (dàilǐshāng)
• 代理店 (dàilǐdiàn)
• 代理權 / 代理权 (dàilǐquán)

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (代理):

• → Japanese: 代(だい)理(り) (dairi)
• → Korean: 대리(代理) (daeri)
• → Vietnamese: đại lí (代理)

Japanese

Kanji in this term
代	理
だい Grade: 3	り Grade: 2
on'yomi

Etymology

By surface analysis, 代(だい) (dai, “replace”) + 理(り) (ri, “deal”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) だいり [dàírí] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [da̠iɾʲi]

Noun

代(だい)理(り) • (dairi) 

1. surrogation, proxy
2. (law) proxy

Derived terms

• 代理母(だいりぼ) (dairibo): surrogate mother
• 代理店(だいりてん) (dairiten): distributor

Verb

代(だい)理(り)する • (dairi suru) transitive suru (stem 代(だい)理(り)し (dairi shi), past 代(だい)理(り)した (dairi shita))

1. to act in place of
   • 2024 March 13, 江島一彦, quotee, “第213回国会　衆議院　財務金融委員会　第10号　令和6年3月13日”, in 国会会議録検索システム‎^[1], 国立国会図書館, retrieved 15 December 2025:

     通関業者が輸入者に代わって関税等の立替え払いをすることは、輸入者を代理して行っているものでございまして、輸入者本人が納税したのと同じ効果を有している […]

     Tsūkan gyōsha ga yunyūsha ni kawatte kanzei-tō no tatekaebarai o suru koto wa, yunyūsha o dairi shite okonatte iru mono de gozai mashite, yunyūsha honnin ga nōzei shita no to onaji kōka o yūshite iru […]

     When customs brokers pay customs duties and other charges on behalf of importers, they are acting as representatives of the importers, and have the same effect as if the importers themselves had paid the taxes […]

Conjugation

Conjugation of "代理する" (See Appendix:Japanese verbs)

Katsuyōkei ("stem forms")
Mizenkei ("imperfective")	代理し	だいりし	dairi shi
Ren’yōkei ("continuative")	代理し	だいりし	dairi shi
Shūshikei ("terminal")	代理する	だいりする	dairi suru
Rentaikei ("attributive")	代理する	だいりする	dairi suru
Kateikei ("hypothetical")	代理すれ	だいりすれ	dairi sure
Meireikei ("imperative")	代理せよ¹ 代理しろ²	だいりせよ¹ だいりしろ²	dairi seyo¹ dairi shiro²
Key constructions
Passive	代理される	だいりされる	dairi sareru
Causative	代理させる 代理さす	だいりさせる だいりさす	dairi saseru dairi sasu
Potential	代理できる	だいりできる	dairi dekiru
Volitional	代理しよう	だいりしよう	dairi shiyō
Negative	代理しない	だいりしない	dairi shinai
Negative continuative	代理せず	だいりせず	dairi sezu
Formal	代理します	だいりします	dairi shimasu
Perfective	代理した	だいりした	dairi shita
Conjunctive	代理して	だいりして	dairi shite
Hypothetical conditional	代理すれば	だいりすれば	dairi sureba

¹ Written imperative
² Spoken imperative

References

• “代理”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia]‎^[2] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2026

Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term
代	理

Noun

代理

1. chữ Hán form of đại lí (“representative retail store”)