樂

• In mainland China (for its traditional form based on Xin Zixing 新字形), Japanese kanji, Korean hanja and Vietnamese Nôm, the bottom component is written 木, which is the historical form found in the Kangxi dictionary.
• In Taiwan and Hong Kong (based on the Big5 encoding standard), the bottom component is written 朩 without a hook instead.
• Three CJK compatibility ideographs exist at U+F914, U+F95C and U+F9BF. All three forms are the same as the form used in Korean hanja.

樂 (Kangxi radical 75, 木+11, 15 strokes, cangjie input 女戈木 (VID), four-corner 2290₄, composition ⿱⿲幺白幺木(GHJKV) or ⿱⿲幺白幺⿻十八(T))

• 嚛(𪠸), 㜰, 㦡, 擽(𭢫/㧰), 濼(泺), 䑈, 櫟(檪/栎), 爍(𭶒/烁), 瓅(𬍛), 皪, 䁻(䀥), 礫(䃯/砾), 纅, 觻, 䟏, 躒(跞), 轢(𮝩/轹), 䤕, 鑠(𮣏/铄), 鱳, 藥(薬/𣛙)
• 𠘙, 𡾒, 𣋵, 𤢴, 𥽗, 𦘈, 𧔉, 𧭥, 𩟧, 𩧂, 𣡝, 𪇱, 𤻲(𬏤)
• 𭀅, 𫿾

• 楽 (Japanese shinjitai)
• 乐 (Simplified Chinese)

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 548, character 20
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 15399
• Dae Jaweon: page 936, character 6
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 2, page 1280, character 16
• Unihan data for U+6A02
• Unihan data for U+F914
• Unihan data for U+F95C
• Unihan data for U+F9BF

Historical forms of the character 樂
Shang	Western Zhou	Spring and Autumn	Warring States			Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)	Liushutong (compiled in Ming)
Oracle bone script	Bronze inscriptions	Bronze inscriptions	Bronze inscriptions	Chu slip and silk script	Qin slip script	Small seal script	Transcribed ancient scripts

Ideogrammic compound (會意／会意) : 糸 (“string”) + 木 (“wood”) – strings on a piece of wood, i.e. a wooden musical instrument.

The oracle bone form shows two strings connected to the wood. In the bronze inscriptions, a 白 (OC *braːɡ) component was added in between the two strings, which may either represent the thumb (fiddling) or a phonetic part.

“music; joyful”

The etymological relationship between “music” and “joy” has been discussed in Wulff (1935) and Unger (1983). Unger draws comparison with the following semantic parallelism in Tibetan: རོལ་མོ (rol mo, “music”) and རོལ (rol, “to enjoy; to amuse oneself; to play”).

Also comparable is Middle Khmer leṅa (“to play”) and bhleṅa (“(playing) music”), whence Thai เล่น (lên, “to play”) and เพลง (pleeng, “music”).

樂

1. music; tune; melody; song

   音樂／音乐  ―  yīnyuè  ―  music

   樂隊／乐队  ―  yuèduì  ―  band

   奏樂／奏乐  ―  zòuyuè  ―  to play music

   • 夫樂者，樂也。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     夫乐者，乐也。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Xunzi, c. 3^rd century BCE

     Fú yuè zhě, lè yě. [Pinyin]

     Music, it's about joy.

2. (obsolete) to play music; to sing

   • 大夫不食粱，士飲酒不樂。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     大夫不食粱，士饮酒不乐。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Book of Rites, c. 4^th – 2^nd century BCE

     Dàfū bù shí liáng, shì yǐnjiǔ bù yuè. [Pinyin]

     Great officers will not eat the large grained millet; and (other) officers will not have music (even) at their drinking.

3. (obsolete) musician

   • 齊人歸女樂，季桓子受之，三日不朝，孔子行。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     齐人归女乐，季桓子受之，三日不朝，孔子行。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Qí rén guī nǚyuè, Jì Huán Zǐ shòu zhī, sān rì bù cháo, Kǒngzǐ xíng. [Pinyin]

     The people of Qi sent to Lu a present of female musicians, which Ji Huan received, and for three days no court was held. Confucius took his departure.

4. (obsolete) musical instrument
5. Short for 樂經／乐经 (Yuèjīng, “Classic of Music”).
6. a surname

   樂毅／乐毅  ―  Yuè Yì  ―  Yue Yi (a prominent military leader of the State of Yan during the Warring States period)

The surname 樂／乐 (yuè) is different from the surname 樂／乐 (lè).

• (music):

樂

1. joyful; happy; glad

   Synonym: 快 (kuài)

   樂不可支／乐不可支  ―  lèbùkězhī  ―  to be overwhelmed with joy

   心裡樂開了花／心里乐开了花  ―  xīnlǐ lè kāi le huā  ―  to be overjoyed

   • 有朋自遠方來，不亦樂乎？ [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     有朋自远方来，不亦乐乎？ [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Yǒu péng zì yuǎnfāng lái, bù yì lè hū? [Pinyin]

     Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters?

   • 獨樂樂，與人樂樂，孰樂？ [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     独乐乐，与人乐乐，孰乐？ [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Mencius, c. 4^th century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Dú yuè lè, yǔ rén yuè lè, shú lè? [Pinyin]

     Which is the more pleasant — to enjoy music by yourself alone, or to enjoy it with others?

2. happiness; joy; pleasure

   • 那時候，消閑無事，我找了你們老弟兄們來，尋個樹蔭涼兒，咱們大家多喝兩場子，豈不是個樂兒嗎？ [Written Vernacular Chinese, trad.]
     那时候，消闲无事，我找了你们老弟兄们来，寻个树荫凉儿，咱们大家多喝两场子，岂不是个乐儿吗？ [Written Vernacular Chinese, simp.]

     From: Wenkang, Ernü Yingxiongzhuan, 1878 CE

     Nà shíhòu, xiāoxián wúshì, wǒ zhǎo le nǐmen lǎo dìxiōng men lái, xún ge shù yīnliángr, zánmen dàjiā duō hē liǎng chǎngzǐ, qǐ bùshì ge lèr ma? [Pinyin]

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

3. (obsolete) lasciviousness; lechery; decadence

   • 今吳王淫於樂而忘其百姓。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     今吴王淫于乐而忘其百姓。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Guoyu, circa 4^th century BCE

     Jīn Wú wáng yín yú lè ér wàng qí bǎixìng. [Pinyin]

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

4. to laugh; to smile

   你把我逗樂了。 [MSC, trad.]
   你把我逗乐了。 [MSC, simp.]

   Nǐ bǎ wǒ dòulè le. [Pinyin]

   You amused me./You made me laugh.

5. to enjoy; to love

   樂此不疲／乐此不疲  ―  lècǐbùpí  ―  to never get tired of it

   • 前秦已拔上黨，上黨民不樂為秦而歸趙。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     前秦已拔上党，上党民不乐为秦而归赵。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Records of the Grand Historian, by Sima Qian, c. 91 BCE

     Qián Qín yǐ bá Shàngdǎng, Shàngdǎng mín bù lè wéi Qín ér guī zhào. [Pinyin]

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

6. (Cantonese) Short for 可樂／可乐 (kělè, “cola”).
7. 24th tetragram of the Taixuanjing; "joy" (𝌝)
8. a surname

The surname 樂／乐 (lè) is different from the surname 樂／乐 (yuè).

• (to laugh; to smile):

樂

1. (obsolete) to be fond of; to enjoy; to appreciate

   • 知者樂水，仁者樂山。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     知者乐水，仁者乐山。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Zhì zhě yào shuǐ, rén zhě yào shān. [Pinyin]

     The wise find pleasure in water; the virtuous find pleasure in hills.

樂

1. Used in place names.

   樂亭／乐亭  ―  Làotíng  ―  Laoting (county of Hebei)

   樂陵／乐陵  ―  Làolíng  ―  Laoling (county-level city in Shandong)

樂

1. Used in compounds.

• “樂”, 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–

(“Jinmeiyō” kanji used for names, kyūjitai kanji, shinjitai form 楽)

1. Kyūjitai form of 楽

From Middle Chinese 樂 (MC ngaewH):

• Go-on: ぎょう (gyō)^{←げう (geu, historical)}
• Kan-on: ごう (gō)^{←がう (gau, historical)}
• Kun: このむ (konomu, 樂む)

From Middle Chinese 樂 (MC ngaewk, “music, singing”):

• Go-on: がく (gaku)
• Kan-on: がく (gaku)
• Kun: かなでる (kanaderu, 樂でる)