| 小 |
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (1.1): 与“大”相对。 Small.
| 《》: | 是以圣人不亲细民，明主不躬小事。 | | 《》: | 楚子伐陆浑之戎，遂至于雒，观兵于周疆，定王使王孙满劳楚子，楚子问鼎之大小轻重焉，对曰，在德不在鼎，昔夏之方有德也，远方图物，贡金九牧，铸鼎象物，百物而为之备，使民知神奸，故民入川泽山林，不逢不若，螭魅罔两，莫能逢之，用能协于上下，以承天休，桀有昏德，鼎迁于商，载祀六百，商纣暴虐，鼎迁于周，德之休明，虽小，重也，其奸回昏乱，虽大，轻也，天祚明德，有所底止，成王定鼎于郏鄏，卜世三十，卜年七百，天所命也，周德虽衰，天命未改，鼎之轻重，未可问也。 |
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (1.2): 使变小。 Make small.
| 《·》: | 匠人斵而小之，则王怒，以为不胜其任矣。 | | Should the workmen hew them so as to make them too small, then your Majesty will be angry, thinking that they will not answer for the purpose. | | 《·》: | 凡大者，小邻国也。 |
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (1.3): 以为小，小看，轻视。 View as small.
| 《·》: | 孟子曰：“孔子登东山而小鲁，登太山而小天下。” | | Mencius said, 'Confucius ascended the eastern hill, and Lu appeared to him small. He ascended the Tai mountain, and all beneath the heavens appeared to him small.' |
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (2.1): 细。 Thin.
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (2.2): 狭隘，不足。 Insufficient.
| 《·》: | 好问则裕，自用则小 | | He who likes to put questions, becomes enlarged; he who uses only his own views, becomes smaller (than he was). |
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (3): 短暂。 Short (time), fleeting.
| 《·》: | 小知不及大知，小年不及大年。 | | The knowledge of that which is small does not reach to that which is great; (the experience of) a few years does not reach to that of many. |
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (4): 年幼。 Young.
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (5): 稍微，略。 Slightly, somewhat.
| 《·》: | 曰：“其为人也小有才，未闻君子之大道也，则足以杀其躯而已矣。” | | Mencius replied, 'He was a man, who had a little ability, but had not learned the great doctrines of the superior man. He was just qualified to bring death upon himself, but for nothing more.' |
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (6.1): 低微。 Low level.
| 《·》: | 柳下惠，不羞污君，不辞小官。 | | Hui of Liu Xia was not ashamed to serve an impure prince, nor did he think it low to be an inferior officer. |
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (6.2): 小人，地位低微的人。 A person of low rank.
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (6.3): 品质坏的人。 A person of bad moral character.
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xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ (7): 谦词：如“小人”、“小子”等。 Humble term for oneself.
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| 小人 |
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xiǎo rén ㄒㄧㄠˇ ㄖㄣˊ (1): 地位低下的人。 Commoner.
| 《·》: | 子曰：“唯女子与小人为难养也，近之则不孙，远之则怨。” | | The Master said, "Of all people, girls and servants are the most difficult to behave to. If you are familiar with them, they lose their humility. If you maintain a reserve towards them, they are discontented." | | 《·》: | 有大人之事，有小人之事。 | | Great men have their proper business, and little men have their proper business. |
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xiǎo rén ㄒㄧㄠˇ ㄖㄣˊ (2): 无道德的人，与“君子”相对。 A mean man, a man with no morals.
| 《·》: | 应之曰：“古者羿作弓，伃作甲，奚仲作车，巧垂作舟，然则今之鲍函车匠皆君子也，而羿、伃、奚仲、巧垂皆小人邪？” | | We answer him: In antiquity Yi invented the bow, Yu invented armour, Xi Zhong invented vehicles, and Qiao Cui invented boats. Would he say, the tanners, armourers, and carpenters of to-day are all superior men, whereas Yi, Yu, Xi Zhong, and Qiao Cui were all ordinary men? | | 《·》: | 子曰：“君子周而不比，小人比而不周。” | | The Master said, "The superior man is catholic and not partisan. The mean man is partisan and not catholic." | | 《·》: | 尹士闻之曰：“士诚小人也。” | | When Yin Shi heard this explanation, he said, 'I am indeed a small man.' | | 《·》: | 君子小人之反也：君子大心则敬天而道，小心则畏义而节。 |
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xiǎo rén ㄒㄧㄠˇ ㄖㄣˊ (3): 对地位高于自己或平辈自称德谦辞。 Humble way of referring to oneself used when speaker to a superior.
| 《》: | 食舍肉，公问之，对曰：“小人有母，皆尝小人之食矣，未尝君之羹。” |
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