| Chinese Text Project | |
| Simplified Chinese version |
| 子曰： | The Master said, |
| “仁之难成久矣， | 'Long has the attainment of perfect humanity been difficult among men; |
| 惟君子能之。 | it is only the superior man who is able to reach it. |
| 是故君子不以其所能者病人， | Therefore the superior man does not distress men by requiring from them that which (only) he himself can do, |
| 不以人之所不能者愧人。 | nor put them to shame because of what they cannot do. |
| 是故圣人之制行也， | Hence the sage, in laying down rules for conduct, |
| 不制以己， | does not make himself the rule, |
| 使民有所劝勉愧耻， | but gives them his instructions so that they shall be able to stimulate themselves to endeavour, and have the feeling of shame |
| 以行其言。 | if they do not put them in practice. |
| 礼以节之， | (He enjoins) the rules of ceremony to regulate the conduct; |
| 信以结之， | good faith to bind it on them; |
| 容貌以文之， | right demeanour to set it off; |
| 衣服以移之， | costume to distinguish it; |
| 朋友以极之， | and friendship to perfect it |
| 欲民之有壹也。 | - he desires in this way to produce a uniformity of the people. |
| 《小雅》曰： | It is said in the Xiao Ya (V, ode 5, 3), |
| ‘不愧于人， | "Shall they unblushing break man's law? |
| 不畏于天。’ | Shall they not stand of Heaven in awe?" |
| Character | Composition | Variants | Reading | Meaning | Hanyu | Kangxi | Cihai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 子 | 子+0 | 㜽 𢀈 𢀉 𡐫 𣕓 只 | zǐ ㄗˇ | Child, heir. Refers to both sons and daughters. / Love, charity. / Respectful term for a man. / People in general. / Fourth of the five levels of nobility. / First of the twelve earthly branches of the zodiac. | v2,p1006#06 | p.277#01 | p.395r1c01 |
| 曰 | 曰+0 | yuē ㄩㄝ | (1) 说。 Say, speak. | v2,p1482#02 | p.502#01 | p.648r3c03 | |
| 仁 | 人+2 | 忈 忎 𡰥 | rén ㄖㄣˊ | humaneness, benevolence, kindness | v1,p0107#01 | p.91#07 | |
| 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 |
| 难 | 隹+11 | 𩁢 𩁬 𩀙 𩁣 𩁲 𩁩 𩀏 𩁤 难 | nán ㄋㄢˊ | Difficult, not easy. / Make difficult, think difficult. | v6,p4108#05 | p.1370#05 | p.1446r3c01 |
| nàn ㄋㄢˋ | Disaster. / Blame. / Censure, reject. / Resent. / Hate. / Doctrine, thesis. | ||||||
| nǎn ㄋㄢˇ | Fear. | ||||||
| nuó ㄋㄨㄛˊ | Luxuriant. / Ceremony to banish sprits thought responsible for contagion. / How, why. | ||||||
| 成 | 戈+2 | 𢦩 | chéng ㄔㄥˊ | completed, finished, fixed | v2,p1399#01 | p.411#11 | |
| 久 | 丿+2 | 乆 | jiǔ ㄐㄧㄡˇ | long time (ago); time passage, grow late | v1,p0033#03 | p.81#19 | p.47r1c02 |
| 矣 | 矢+2 | 𠤘 | yǐ ㄧˇ | Modal particle used to express declaration. / Modal particle used to express exclamation. / Modal particle used to express an order or request. | v4,p2580#04 | p.823#37 | p.955r5c01 |
| 惟 | 心+8 | 𢛧 | wéi ㄨㄟˊ | but, however, nevertheless; only | v4,p2316#03 | p.391#17 | p.534r6c02 |
| 君子 | 口+4 子+0 | 𠱩 𠱭 㜽 𢀈 𢀉 𡐫 𣕓 只 | jūnzǐ ㄐㄩㄣㄗˇ | (2) 有道德的人。 A moral man. | v1,p0595#06 v2,p1006#06 | p.177#07 p.277#01 | p.256r6c08 p.395r1c01 |
| 能 | 肉+6 | néng ㄋㄥˊ | A type of bear. / Ability, talent. / Man of ability, man of talent. / Able to, competent. / Comply with, be friendly towards. / Encompass, obtain. / To, arrive at. / Then, thus. / Same as “而(4.3)” ér ㄦˊ: Connective: if, supposing. / Only, merely. / Even if. / Thus, in this way. / Three-legged turtle. | v3,p2074#01 | p.981#16 | p.1095r5c02 | |
| nài ㄋㄞˋ | Withstand, endure. | ||||||
| tái ㄊㄞˊ | Same as “台(1.1)” tái ㄊㄞˊ: Name of a celestial body. | ||||||
| tài ㄊㄞˋ | State, form. | ||||||
| 是 | 日+5 | 昰 𣆞 | shì ㄕˋ | Straight. / Right, correct. / Believe accurate, affirm. / Demonstrative pronoun: this. / Be (copula). / Auxiliary word, used after moving forward the object. | v2,p1497#05 | p.493#26 | p.639r1c01 |
| 故 | 攴+5 | gù ㄍㄨˋ | Cause. / State of affairs. / Event, incident. / Plot. / Old. / Past, original. / Death. / On purpose. / Originally. / Hence, thus. | v2,p1453#05 | p.469#25 | p.601r5c01 | |
| 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. | ||||||
| 以 | 人+3 | 㠯 | yǐ ㄧˇ | Use. / Believe. / Command. / Lead. / Connect, implicate. / Have. / Cause, reason. / Preposition: because. / Preposition: from, in. / Preposition: at [some time]. / Preposition: using. / Preposition: in accordance with. / Preposition: relying upon. / Preposition: in the capacity of. / Preposition: with, together with. / Connective: indicates the following action is the objective of the preceding one. / Connective: used between adverbial clause and verb to express modification. / Connective: and. / Connective: but. / Connective: and so, thus. / Particle: used together with some words expressing direction and time. / Modal particle. / Same as “已(1)” yǐ ㄧˇ: Stop, discontinue. / Same as “已(7.2)” yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: already. / Same as “已(7.3)” yǐ ㄧˇ: Adverb: extremely. | v1,p0105#07 | p.94#01 | p.87r6c01 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 所 | 户+4 | 𢨷 | suǒ ㄙㄨㄛˇ | Place. / Location. / A suitable place or location. / Measure word, used for counting buldings. / Used before a verb, creates a noun-like phrase. / If. Mainly used in oaths and curses. / Used together with 为 to indicate the passive tense. / Indicates an approximate number. / Number, number of times. / Meaning. | v3,p2259#01 | p.415#16 | p.556r1c01 |
| 者 | 老+4 | zhě ㄓㄜˇ | Pronoun used after verbs, adjectives, etc. in place of a person or thing. / Pronoun used after numbers in place of a thing. / Pronoun used after time or negation to express "when" or "if". / Expressive particle used in a declarative sentence after the subject. / Expressive particle used in a sentence after the subject to express cause or explanation. | v4,p2780#05 | p.961#01 | p.1080r1c01 | |
| zhuó ㄓㄨㄛˊ | In, located in. | ||||||
| 病 | 疒+5 | bìng ㄅㄧㄥˋ | illness, sickness, disease | v4,p2664#13 | p.772#06 | p.920r5c02 | |
| 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 |
| 愧 | 心+10 | 愧 | kuì ㄎㄨㄟˋ | ashamed, conscience-stricken | v4,p2329#11 | p.396#08 | p.540r2c05 |
| 圣人 | 耳+7 人+0 | 垩 𦕡 𠄵 圣 𠔽 亻 | shèng rén ㄕㄥˋ ㄖㄣˊ | 出类拔萃的人。 Sage, outstanding person. | v4,p2789#06 v1,p0101#10 | p.967#22 p.91#01 | p.1082r6c06 p.80r2c01 |
| 制 | 刀+6 | 𠜔 𠝦 𠝁 𠛐 制 | zhì ㄓˋ | system; establish; overpower | v1,p0335#01 | p.139#02 | p.181r6c04 |
| 行 | 行+0 | 行 | xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ | Walk, move (on foot). / Advance, move forward. / Leave, exit. / Patrol, go on inspection. / Inspection of the realm by the Son of Heaven. / Be married off. / Flow, circulate. / Channel, guide. / Revolution, circular motion. / Experience. / Luggage, belongings taken on a journey. / Do, carry out. / Actions. / Accomplishments. / Use, utilize. / Take over (an official duty). / Offer, present. / Moral conduct, behaviour. / A type of classical poem. / A piece of music. / Semi-cursive script. / Adverb: will, about to. / Adverb: again, once more. / Adverb: by chance, luckily. / Ambassador (official title). / Measure word for number of pourings of drinks. | v2,p0811#06 | p.1108#31 | p.1203r5c05 |
| háng ㄏㄤˊ | Road. / Track, pattern. / Row, line. / Row of soldiers in battle. / Unit of 25 soldiers. / Shaft of a feather (and by extension, wings). / Measure word for things which form rows. / Rank, position. | ||||||
| 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 |
| 己 | 己+0 | 𢀒 | jǐ ㄐㄧˇ | self, oneself; personal, private; 6th heavenly stem | v2,p0983#05 | p.326#09 | p.467r2c01 |
| 使 | 人+6 | 𡥐 𠭆 | shǐ ㄕˇ | Order, send (on a mission). / Cause, make. / Allocate, use. / Indulge in.. / Send as an envoy. / Envoy, messenger. / Connective: if, supposing. | v1,p0145#02 | p.101#05 | p.101r3c03 |
| 民 | 氏+1 | 𠘽 | mín ㄇㄧㄣˊ | people, subjects, citizens | v3,p2131#01 | p.598#01 | p.750r3c01 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 劝 | 力+18 | 勧 劝 | quàn ㄑㄩㄢˋ | recommend, advise, urge | v1,p0382#18 | p.150#12 | p.200r1c04 |
| 勉 | 力+7 | miǎn ㄇㄧㄢˇ | endeavor, make effort; urge | v1,p0372#03 | p.147#37 | p.195r5c01 | |
| 耻 | 心+6 | 耻 | chǐ ㄔˇ | shame, humiliation; ashamed | v4,p2290#01 | p.385#06 | p.529r6c02 |
| 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 |
| 礼 | 示+13 | 禮 礼 𠃞 𤔑 礼 | lǐ ㄌㄧˇ | social custom; manners; courtesy; rites | v4,p2409#14 | p.847#07 | p.985r2c04 |
| 节 | 竹+7 | 罇 卩 节 | jié jiē ㄐㄧㄝˊ ㄐㄧㄝ | knot, node, joint; section | v5,p2976#04 | p.891#24 | p.1018r1c03 |
| 信 | 人+7 | 伩 㐰 䚱 | xìn ㄒㄧㄣˋ | True, words fitting the truth. / As expected. / Really, actually. / Trust, trustworthy. / Reliable, orderly. / Believe, have confidence in. / Clarify, determine. / Clear, clear-cut. / Certificate, (object of) proof. / Sealed letter, written proof. / Envoy, messenger. / Freely, as one wishes. / Stay for two nights in succession. | v1,p0165#01 | p.105#25 | p.109r2c01 |
| shēn ㄕㄣ | Straight, linear. / Uphold, promote. | ||||||
| 结 | 糸+6 | 揭 结 | jié jì jiē ㄐㄧㄝˊ ㄐㄧˋ ㄐㄧㄝ | knot, tie; join, connect | v5,p3390#03 | p.921#34 | p.1040r4c03 |
| 容 | 宀+7 | 𠕺 | róng ㄖㄨㄥˊ | looks, appearance; figure, form | v2,p0933#17 | p.287#03 | p.421r6c01 |
| 貌 | 豸+7 | 皃 𧳒 | mào ㄇㄠˋ | countenance, appearance | v6,p3913#04 | p.1201#19 | p.1266r5c05 |
| 文 | 文+0 | 㒚 稳 | wén ㄨㄣˊ | Mixture of colours. / Decorative design. / Portray in words or pictures. / Adornment, embellishment. / External appearance. / Characters, words. / Books, works. / Confucian doctrine. / Civilian, non-military. / Drum (musical instrument). / Measure word for money. | v3,p2169#01 | p.477#01 | p.608r4c02 |
| wèn ㄨㄣˋ | Adorn, embellish. / Conceal, gloss over. | ||||||
| 衣 | 衣+0 | 衤 | yī yì ㄧ ㄧˋ | clothes, clothing; cover, skin | v5,p3074#01 | p.1111#01 | p.1208r5c01 |
| 服 | 月+4 | 𣍞 𦨈 | fú fù bì ㄈㄨˊ ㄈㄨˋ ㄅㄧˋ | clothes; wear, dress | v3,p2053#07 | p.505#02 | |
| 移 | 禾+6 | 𥞀 迻 | yí chǐ yì ㄧˊ ㄔˇ ㄧˋ | change place, shift; move about | v4,p2603#20 | p.853#04 | p.991r5c06 |
| 朋 | 月+4 | péng ㄆㄥˊ | Conspire out of self-interest, form a clique. / Come together, form a group. / Collaborate with. / Compare. / Friend. / Peng, an ancient unit of currency. | v3,p2050#06 | p.504#29 | p.658r5c02 | |
| 友 | 又+2 | 㕛 𠬺 𦐮 𦫹 𦐯 | yǒu ㄧㄡˇ | friend, companion; fraternity | v1,p0391#01 | p.165#06 | p.233r6c04 |
| 极 | 木+9 | 极 | jí ㄐㄧˊ | extreme, utmost, furthest, final | v2,p1240#10 | p.542#02 | p.710r4c03 |
| 欲 | 欠+7 | 欲 | yù ㄩˋ | desire, want, long for; intend | v3,p2140#07 | p.567#36 | p.729r4c02 |
| 壹 | 士+9 | 搋 一 弌 夁 𡔾 𡕋 𡕍 | yī yì ㄧ ㄧˋ | number one | v1,p0467#10 | p.243#10 | p.333r6c05 |
| 小 | 小+0 | xiǎo ㄒㄧㄠˇ | Small. / Make small. / View as small. / Thin. / Insufficient. / Short (time), fleeting. / Young. / Slightly, somewhat. / Low level. / A person of low rank. / A person of bad moral character. / Humble term for oneself. | v1,p0560#12 | p.296#18 | p.438r2c01 | |
| 雅 | 隹+4 | yǎ yā yá ㄧㄚˇ ㄧㄚ ㄧㄚˊ | elegant, graceful, refined | v6,p4094#02 | p.1365#14 | p.1437r5c01 | |
| 于 | 二+1 | 扵 于 | yú ㄩˊ | Go to, go towards. / Take. / Rim of the mouth of a bell. / A type of plant. / [Onomatopoeia] / Same as “于(3.1)” yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: in. / Same as “于(3.2)” yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: from or to. / Same as “于(3.3)” yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: compared to. / Same as “于(3.4)” yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: to, for, towards. / Same as “于(3.5)” yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: by (indicating passive tense). / Same as “于(3.6)” yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: with, using. / Same as “于(3.7)” yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: due to, because of. / Same as “于(3.8)” yú ㄩˊ: Preposition: by, according to. / Preposition: for, in place of. / Connective: and. / Auxiliary word: used in a sentence for aesthetic purpose only, no meaning. / Auxiliary word: used in at the end of a sentence to express questioning. | v1,p0004#05 | p.86#06 | p.63r3c02 |
| 畏 | 田+4 | 𤰲 𤰣 | wèi ㄨㄟˋ | Fear. / Make fear, scare. / Revere, respect. / Worry. / Detain, restrain. / Die. / Curved part of a bow. | v4,p2532#03 | p.760#22 | p.913r1c01 |
| wēi ㄨㄟ | Might, power. | ||||||
| 于 | 方+4 | 乌 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 |
| 天 | 大+1 | 𠀡 𠀘 𦴞 兲 靝 𠕹 | tiān ㄊㄧㄢ | sky, heaven; god, celestial | v1,p0522#01 | p.248#04 | p.358r4c01 |
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