| Chinese Text Project |
| 仲憲言於曾子曰： | Zhong Xian said to Zeng-zi, |
| 「夏后氏用明器， | 'Under the sovereigns of the Xia dynasty, they used (at burials) the vessels which were such only to the eye of fancy, |
| 示民無知也； | intimating to the people that (the dead) had no knowledge. |
| 殷人用祭器， | Under the Yin they used the (ordinary) sacrificial vessels, |
| 示民有知也； | intimating to the people that (the dead) had knowledge. |
| 周人兼用之， | Under the Zhou we use both, |
| 示民疑也。」 | intimating to the people that the thing is doubtful.' |
| 曾子曰： | Zeng-zi replied, |
| 「其不然乎！ | 'It is not so! |
| 其不然乎！ | It is not so! |
| 夫明器，鬼器也； | What are vessels (only) to the eye of fancy are for the shades (of the departed); |
| 祭器，人器也； | the vessels of sacrifice are those of men; |
| 夫古之人，胡為而死其親乎？」 | how should those ancients have treated their parents as if they were dead?' |
| Character | Composition | Variants | Reading | Meaning | Hanyu | Kangxi | Cihai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 仲憲 | 人+4 心+12 | 宪 | zhòng xiàn ㄓㄨㄥˋ ㄒㄧㄢˋ | [人名] [Name of a person] | v1,p0121#07 v4,p2351#09 | p.94#11 p.404#11 | p.88r4c01 p.544r6c02 |
| 言 | 言+0 | 訁 𢍗 𢍬 | yán ㄧㄢˊ | Speak, say. / Discuss, debate. / Tell. / Doctrine, theory, words. / One word. / Sentence. / Particle, no meaning. | v6,p3936#01 | p.1146#01 | p.1236r5c03 |
| 於 | 方+4 | 烏 𣱏 𤕘 于 亏 扵 | yú ㄩˊ | Be (copula). / Be, exist. / Preposition: in. / Preposition: from or to. / Preposition: compared to. / Preposition: to, for, towards. / Preposition: by (indicating passive tense). / Preposition: with, using. / Preposition: due to, because of. / Preposition: by, according to. / Connective: just as. / Auxiliary word, no meaning. | v3,p2175#02 | p.481#11 | p.622r2c03 |
| 曾子 | 曰+8 子+0 | 曽 㜽 𢀈 𢀉 𡐫 𣕓 只 | zēng zǐ ㄗㄥ ㄗˇ | Same as 「曾參」 zēng shēn ㄗㄥ ㄕㄣ: 姓曾，名參（shēn），字子輿，孔子的學生。 Zeng Shen, a student of Confucius. | v2,p1521#03 v2,p1006#06 | p.503#03 p.277#01 | p.653r1c01 p.395r1c01 |
| 曰 | 曰+0 | yuē ㄩㄝ | (1) 說。 Say, speak. | v2,p1482#02 | p.502#01 | p.648r3c03 | |
| 夏 | 夊+7 | 𡔰 𠍺 昰 𡕾 | xià jiǎ ㄒㄧㄚˋ ㄐㄧㄚˇ | summer; great, grand, big | v2,p0869#10 | p.245#12 | p.335r1c08 |
| 后 | 口+3 | 后 後 | hòu ㄏㄡˋ | queen, empress, sovereign; (simp. for 後) behind, rear, after | v1,p0580#01 | p.176#01 | p.255r4c01 |
| 氏 | 氏+0 | 厥 | shì zhī jīng ㄕˋ ㄓ ㄐㄧㄥ | clan, family; mister | v3,p2130#01 | p.597#18 | p.750r2c01 |
| 用 | 用+0 | 𤰆 𠛁 | yòng ㄩㄥˋ | use, employ, apply, operate; use | v1,p0097#05 | p.755#24 | p.908r6c02 |
| 明 | 日+4 | 朙 | míng ㄇㄧㄥˊ | Bright, brilliant. / Daytime. / Clear, obvious. / Clarify, make clear. / Understand. / Straightforwardly, clearly. / Clear, clean. / Wise. / Make wise. / Spirit, god. / Respect. / Eyesight. / Good eyesight. / See clearly. / The following (day, month, year, etc.). | v2,p1491#08 | p.491#12 | p.631r3c01 |
| 器 | 口+13 | 噐 𡄛 | qì ㄑㄧˋ | receptacle, vessel; instrument | v1,p0690#07 | p.210#02 | p.291r3c03 |
| 示 | 示+0 | 𥘅 礻 | shì qī zhì shí ㄕˋ ㄑㄧ ㄓˋ ㄕˊ | show, manifest; demonstrate | v4,p2385#01 | p.839#20 | p.975r3c08 |
| 民 | 氏+1 | 𠘽 | mín ㄇㄧㄣˊ | people, subjects, citizens | v3,p2131#01 | p.598#01 | p.750r3c01 |
| 無 | 火+8 | 𣟒 𣚨 𠘩 无 橆 | wú ㄨˊ | Not have. / Philosophical category referring to absence, non-existence, or vacuity. / Adverb expressing negation: not. / Adverb expressing questioning: or not. / Connective: regardless of. / Connective: even if. / Particle used at the beginning of a sentence, no meaning. / Do not. / Barren, uncultivated. | v3,p2211#15 | p.673#26 | p.848r2c04 |
| 知 | 矢+3 | 𢇻 𥎿 | zhī ㄓ | Know, understand. / Perception. / Recognize. / Knowledge. / Know about, make sense of. / Be friendly with. / Control, get on top of. | v4,p2581#02 | p.824#01 | p.955r5c02 |
| zhì ㄓˋ | Wisdom. | ||||||
| 也 | 乙+2 | 𠃟 匜 | yě ㄧㄝˇ | Modal particle used at the end of a sentence, expressing assertion and affirmation. / Modal particle used at the end of a question for emphasis. / Modal particle used at the end of a cause-effect sentence to express explanation. / Modal particle used in the middle of a sentence to express a pause. | v1,p0050#05 | p.84#04 | p.55r1c01 |
| 殷 | 殳+6 | yīn yān yǐn ㄧㄣ ㄧㄢ ㄧㄣˇ | many, great; abundant, flourishing | v3,p2156#04 | p.585#02 | p.742r6c03 | |
| 人 | 人+0 | 𠔽 亻 | rén ㄖㄣˊ | Man, person. / Others, other people. / The people, ordinary men. / Talent, material. / [A man's] character. / Affairs of men, world of man. / Benevolence. | v1,p0101#10 | p.91#01 | p.80r2c01 |
| 祭 | 示+6 | jì zhài ㄐㄧˋ ㄓㄞˋ | sacrifice to, worship | v4,p2397#07 | p.843#07 | p.982r1c02 | |
| 有 | 月+2 | | yǒu ㄧㄡˇ | Have, possess. / Store, collect. / Occupy. / Hold on to, retain. / Have in abundance. / Good harvest. / Obtain. / Only. / Be, exist. / Occur, happen. / Make. / Particle used before a noun with no meaning. / Particle used before a monosyllabic adjective with no meaning. / Particle used before a verb with no meaning. / Still, yet. / Some people. / Region. | v3,p2041#05 | p.504#20 | p.656r5c01 |
| yòu ㄧㄡˋ | Help, assist. / Same as 「又(3)」 yòu ㄧㄡˋ: Moreover. | ||||||
| 周 | 口+5 | 週 𠱬 𠄗 | zhōu ㄓㄡ | Surround. / Cyclicly, repeatedly. / (Travel) widely. / Careful, detailed. / Firm, unshaken. / Measure word: number of times. / Friendly, approachable. / Suitable, appropriate (for). / Turning place, corner. / Most (superlative). / Assist financially. / The Zhou dynasty. | v1,p0606#03 | p.181#36 | |
| 兼 | 八+8 | 𥡝 | jiān ㄐㄧㄢ | unite, combine; connect; and | v1,p0249#08 | p.128#11 | p.162r6c02 |
| 之 | 丿+3 | 㞢 | zhī ㄓ | Towards; go to. / Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Third person pronoun: him, her, it. / Auxiliary word: of. / Auxiliary word: used between subject and predicate, cancels independence of a clause. / Auxiliary word: used in a sentence for aesthetic purpose only, no meaning. | v1,p0043#01 | p.82#04 | p.47r2c02 |
| 疑 | 疋+9 | 𦬦 | yí nǐ níng ㄧˊ ㄋㄧˇ ㄋㄧㄥˊ | doubt, question, suspect | v4,p2751#04 | p.768#03 | p.919r1c02 |
| 其 | 八+6 | 丌 亓 | qí ㄑㄧˊ | Third-person possessive pronoun: his, her, its, their. / Demonstrative pronoun: that, those. / Adverb expressing estimation or guess. / Adverb expressing imperative. / Adverb expressing rhetorical question. / Adverb expressing future tense. / Connective expressing hypothesis: if, supposing. / Connective expressing choice: or. / Connective expressing concession: even if. / Particle used after an adjective. / Particle: of. / Particle used for emphasis after single-character adjectives or onomatopoeia. / Particle used in the middle of a sentence to alter the tempo. | v1,p0245#01 | p.127#18 | p.162r5c01 |
| jì ㄐㄧˋ | Particle used after bi and he. | ||||||
| jī ㄐㄧ | Modal particle expressing interrogative tone. / A year. | ||||||
| 不 | 一+3 | 不 𠀚 𠙐 | bù ㄅㄨˋ | Not have. / To not be. / Negational adverb, used before verbs, adjectives, etc. to indicate negation. / Negational adverb expressing prohibition: do not. / Negational adverb expressing rhetorical question: is not...? | v1,p0011#06 | p.76#15 | p.30r1c01 |
| fǒu ㄈㄡˇ | Same as 「否(1.2)」 fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used together with an affirmative word, expressing its negative or opposite. / Same as 「否(1.3)」 fǒu ㄈㄡˇ: Adverb used at the end of a question to form a yes-no question. | ||||||
| fū ㄈㄨ | Sepal of a flower. | ||||||
| pī ㄆㄧ | Same as 「丕(1)」 pī ㄆㄧ: Large. | ||||||
| bǐ ㄅㄧˇ | Show disdain for. | ||||||
| 然 | 火+8 | 燃 𤓉 | rán ㄖㄢˊ | Burn. / Demonstrative pronoun: like this, like that. / Expresses affirmation: true, indeed so. / Believe correct, affirm. / Adverb: actually, thus. / Connective: but, however, yet. / Particle used at the end of a sentence to express comparison. Like, as if. / Particle used after an adjective or adverb to express state. / Particle used at the end of a sentence to express affirmative mode. | v3,p2213#05 | p.675#12 | p.852r5c01 |
| 乎 | 丿+4 | 虖 | hū ㄏㄨ | Modal particle expressing questioning or a rhetorical question. / Modal particle expressing admiration or exclamation. / Modal particle expressing estimation. / Modal particle expressing request or order. / Modal particle expressing calling. / Modal particle expressing consideration. / Modal particle expressing affirmation. / Particle used after adjectives. / Particle used in the middle of a sentence to express a pause. / Preposition: in, from, to. | v1,p0036#08 | p.82#07 | p.47r3c03 |
| 夫 | 大+1 | fū ㄈㄨ | General term for adult men. / Adult labourers in particular. / Soldier. / Respectful term for a man. / Husband. / Unit of area equal to one hundred mu. | v1,p0521#01 | p.248#11 | p.367r2c01 | |
| fú ㄈㄨˊ | Demonstrative pronoun: this, these. / Modal particle used at the start of a sentence for emphasis or to indicate an assertion. / Modal particle used in the middle of a sentence to soften the tone. / Modal particle used at the end of a sentence to express exclamation. | ||||||
| 鬼 | 鬼+0 | 𩲡 𢇼 𣆠 | guǐ ㄍㄨㄟˇ | ghost; spirit of dead; devil | v7,p4427#01 | p.1460#30 | p.1521r5c03 |
| 古 | 口+2 | 𠖠 𡇣 | gǔ ㄍㄨˇ | old, classic, ancient | v1,p0568#03 | p.171#08 | p.240r1c02 |
| 胡 | 肉+5 | 楜 衚 鬍 | hú ㄏㄨˊ | (Of animals) Tissue drooping down under the chin. / Neck. / Part of a weapon which hangs down. / Longevity. / Far, large. / Bearded. / What, why. / Arbitrary, unjustified. / The state of Hu. / Outsiders, foreigners. / Type of sacrificial vessel. | v3,p2056#08 | p.979#12 | p.1093r2c01 |
| 為 | 火+5 | 爲 为 | wéi ㄨㄟˊ | Create, make. / Build, construct. / Do. / Plant, grow. / Govern. / Research, study. / Serve as. / Change into, become. / As, in the role of. / Count as, be considered as. / Called, named. / Expresses judgement: is. / Make, cause (to). / Have. / Take part in. / Write, author. / Connective: if. / Particle used in the middle of a sentence to move forward the object. / Modal particle used at the end of a sentence to express a rhetorical question. | v3,p2198#11 | p.669#10 | p.844r4c03 |
| wèi ㄨㄟˋ | Help, assist. / Preposition: for, on behalf of. / Preposition: by (passive). / Preposition: because of, due to. / Preposition: with, together with. / Connective: because. / Say. / False, fake. | ||||||
| 而 | 而+0 | ér ㄦˊ | Whiskers. / Like, similar to. / Pronoun: you. / Pronoun: this, like this. / Connective: and, with. / Connective: and, then. / Connective: if, supposing. / Connective: yet, however. / Connective: therefore, hence. / Connective: expresses method or state. / Particle: of. / Expressive particle. | v4,p2810#01 | p.961#18 | p.1080r2c03 | |
| néng ㄋㄥˊ | Same as 「能(3)」 néng ㄋㄥˊ: Able to, competent. / Same as 「能(2.1)」 néng ㄋㄥˊ: Ability, talent. | ||||||
| 死 | 歹+2 | 𠑾 𣥴 | sǐ ㄙˇ | die; dead; death | v2,p1380#06 | p.578#22 | p.740r6c06 |
| 親 | 見+9 | 𢈥 寴 𡩁 亲 | qīn ㄑㄧㄣ | Parents. / Relatives. / Love, favour. / Close, intimate. / Contact, touch. / Personally. / Do oneself. | v6,p3671#12 | p.1136#12 | p.1230r5c04 |
| 乎 | 丿+4 | 虖 | hū ㄏㄨ | (1.1) 語氣詞：表示疑問或反問，相當於「嗎」或「呢」。 Modal particle expressing questioning or a rhetorical question. | v1,p0036#08 | p.82#07 | p.47r3c03 |
| Enjoy this site? Please help. | Site design and content copyright 2006-2024. When quoting or citing information from this site, please link to the corresponding page or to https://ctext.org. Please note that the use of automatic download software on this site is strictly prohibited, and that users of such software are automatically banned without warning to save bandwidth. 沪ICP备09015720号-3 | Comments? Suggestions? Please raise them here. |