Background

Modern Chinese and Classical Chinese are distinctly different. Even though some of the writing may be the same, grammar, sentence structure and meanings of words in their cultural context changed over time and may make Chinese classics difficult if not impossible to understand. The Book of Expletives serves as an interpretation of classical Chinese texts in modern terms.

概说

经传释词初刊于嘉庆三年，有王引之自序。嘉庆二十四年再版，阮元又序，称「高邮王氏乔梓，贯通经训，兼及词气。昔聆其『终风』诸说，每为解颐」。胡培翬撰《书后》云：「是书专释语词虚字，辟前古未有之途经，荟萃众解，津逮后人，足补《尔雅》之阙」。

经传释词主要因声求义，不限形体。其研究方法包括古注推衍、互文同训、异文互证、同文比例等。本书尤其注重对虚词的解释。

本书有两个问题。其一为缺漏甚多，其二是有时会错误解释古书。