| Chinese Text Project | |
| Simplified Chinese version |
| 田荒则民诈生，国贫则上匮赏。 | If the fields lie fallow, the people will live by deceit; if the country is poor, the ruler will lack rewards. |
| 故圣人之为治也，刑人无国位，戮人无官任。 | Therefore, when a sage administers a country, culprits have no government position and felons do not hold office. |
| 刑人有列， | If culprits were to hold rank, |
| 则君子下其位； | then the superior man would resign from his position; |
| 戮人衣锦食肉， | if felons were to be clothed with brocades and fed with meat, |
| 则小人冀其利。 | then the inferior man would hope for such advantages. |
| 君子下其位， | If superior men resigned from their positions, |
| 则羞功； | one would be ashamed of merit; |
| 小人冀其利， | if inferior men hoped for such advantages, |
| 则伐奸。 | one would boast of wickedness. |
| 故刑戮者， | So punishments and executions |
| 所以止奸也； | are the means whereby wickedness is stopped, |
| 而官爵者， | and office and rank |
| 所以劝功也。 | are the means whereby merit is encouraged. |
| Character | Composition | Variants | Reading | Meaning | Hanyu | Kangxi | Cihai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 田 | 田+0 | tián ㄊㄧㄢˊ | field, arable land, cultivated | v4,p2524#01 | p.756#11 | p.909r3c02 | |
| 荒 | 草+6 | 𠃤 𠯚 | huāng huǎng kāng ㄏㄨㄤ ㄏㄨㄤˇ ㄎㄤ | wasteland, desert; uncultivated | v5,p3209#02 | p.1031#08 | p.1138r3c02 |
| 则 | 刀+7 | 𠟻 𠟭 𠞋 𠟔 则 | zé ㄗㄜˊ | Method, rule. / Mimic, emulate. / Level, grade. / Adverb used to emphasize an assertion. / Adverb used to express scope: only. / Connective expressing continuation: then, and then. / Connective emphasizing comparison. / Connective expressing contrast. / Connective expressing allowance: yet, even so. / Connective expressing unexpected turn of events. / Connective expressing suppostion: if. | v1,p0340#06 | p.139#31 | p.183r5c05 |
| 民 | 氏+1 | 𠘽 | mín ㄇㄧㄣˊ | people, subjects, citizens | v3,p2131#01 | p.598#01 | p.750r3c01 |
| 诈 | 言+5 | 醡 诈 | zhà ㄓㄚˋ | cheat, defraud, swindle; trick; to feign | v6,p3954#11 | p.1154#20 | p.1241r2c01 |
| 生 | 生+0 | 𤯓 | shēng ㄕㄥ | life, living, lifetime; birth | v4,p2575#01 | p.754#26 | p.906r5c03 |
| 国 | 囗+8 | 圀 国 囗 囶 𢧌 䆐 囯 国 | guó ㄍㄨㄛˊ | nation, country, nation-state | v1,p0720#09 | p.219#16 | p.303r4c02 |
| 贫 | 贝+4 | 𡧋 贫 | pín ㄆㄧㄣˊ | poor, impoverished, needy | v6,p3628#01 | p.1205#10 | p.1270r3c01 |
| 上 | 一+2 | 丄 𠄞 | shàng ㄕㄤˋ | top; superior, highest; go up, send up | v1,p0005#04 | p.76#07 | p.24r2c01 |
| 匮 | 匚+12 | 樻 柜 柜 馈 匮 | guì kuì ㄍㄨㄟˋ ㄎㄨㄟˋ | to lack | v1,p0089#14 | p.154#20 | p.206r5c02 |
| 赏 | 贝+8 | 赏 | shǎng ㄕㄤˇ | reward, grant, bestow; appreciate | v6,p3647#07 | p.1209#19 | p.1276r4c01 |
| 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 | |
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 为 | 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. | ||||||
| 治 | 水+5 | 乿 | zhì ㄓˋ | Rule, administer. / Well ruled, peaceful and orderly. / Punish, execute. / Cure, treat (an illness). / Prepare. / Construct. / Research, study. | v3,p1599#06 | p.614#07 | p.776r5c02 |
| 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 |
| 刑 | 刀+4 | xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ | Punish. / Kill, put to death. / Harm, disaster. / Law, rules of punishment. / Rule by law. / A die used in casting. / A model, an example. / To emulate, imitate. / Achieve, establish. / Same as “鉶” xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ: Porcelain soup bowl. / Same as “形(1.1)” xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ: Body, thing with form. / Same as “形(5)” xíng ㄒㄧㄥˊ: Exhibit, show. | v1,p0324#15 | p.137#11 | p.178r4c02 | |
| 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 |
| 无 | 火+8 | 𣟒 𣚨 𠘩 无 无 | 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 |
| 位 | 人+5 | wèi ㄨㄟˋ | throne; position, post; rank, status; seat | v1,p0138#03 | p.98#07 | p.96r1c04 | |
| 戮 | 戈+11 | 戮 𡠢 𦐱 𣩍 | lù ㄌㄨˋ | kill, massacre; oppress | v2,p1412#05 | p.414#04 | p.553r5c02 |
| 官 | 宀+5 | 𠕍 | guān ㄍㄨㄢ | official, public servant | v2,p0921#04 | p.283#15 | p.413r2c01 |
| 任 | 人+4 | 仼 | rèn rén ㄖㄣˋ ㄖㄣˊ | trust to, rely on, appoint; to bear, duty, office; allow | v1,p0122#06 | p.94#24 | p.88r6c05 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 列 | 刀+4 | 列 𠜺 | liè ㄌㄧㄝˋ | a line; to arrange in order, classify | v1,p0325#05 | p.137#26 | p.177r5c03 |
| 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 |
| 下 | 一+2 | 丅 厥 𠄟 | xià ㄒㄧㄚˋ | under, underneath, below; down; inferior; bring down | v1,p0007#01 | p.76#10 | p.28r1c01 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 衣 | 衣+0 | 衤 | yī yì ㄧ ㄧˋ | clothes, clothing; cover, skin | v5,p3074#01 | p.1111#01 | p.1208r5c01 |
| 锦 | 金+8 | 锦 | jǐn ㄐㄧㄣˇ | brocade, tapestry; embroidered | v6,p4222#02 | p.1311#11 | p.1385r1c02 |
| 食 | 食+0 | 饣 𩚁 飠 𩚃 餐 | shí sì yì ㄕˊ ㄙˋ ㄧˋ | eat; meal; food; KangXi radical number 184 | v7,p4440#01 | p.1415#29 | p.1489r2c03 |
| 肉 | 肉+0 | 宍 | ròu rù ㄖㄡˋ ㄖㄨˋ | flesh; meat; KangXi radical 130 | v5,p2931#01 | p.973#01 | p.1088r2c01 |
| 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 | |
| 冀 | 八+14 | jì ㄐㄧˋ | hope for; wish; Hebei province | v1,p0253#08 | p.128#24 | p.164r1c02 | |
| 利 | 刀+5 | 利 𥝢 𥝤 | lì ㄌㄧˋ | Sharp. / Fast, speedy. / Favourable, lucky. / Convenient, useful. / Profits, benefits. / Beneficial to, good for. / Profit, interest. / Diarrhea. | v1,p0329#02 | p.138#19 | p.180r2c02 |
| 羞 | 羊+5 | 羞 | xiū ㄒㄧㄡ | disgrace, shame; ashamed; shy | v5,p3128#07 | p.952#04 | p.1070r4c02 |
| 功 | 力+3 | gōng ㄍㄨㄥ | achievement, merit, good result | v1,p0365#08 | p.146#11 | p.192r3c03 | |
| 伐 | 人+4 | fá ㄈㄚˊ | Stab, strike with a sword. / Cut down, chop down. / Hit [a drum]. / Launch an attack on. / Remove. / Achievements of battle. / Pride. / Name of a celestial body. / Raised mound between fields. / Shield. | v1,p0120#08 | p.96#01 | p.92r6c01 | |
| 奸 | 女+6 | 𢙶 奸 | jiān ㄐㄧㄢ | adultery, debauchery; debauch | v2,p1048#10 | p.260#10 | p.384r1c07 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 止 | 止+0 | 只 | zhǐ ㄓˇ | stop, halt, desist; detain | v2,p1435#03 | p.573#24 | p.732r3c02 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 爵 | 爪+14 | 𥥼 𩰧 𣡫 𠙘 | jué ㄐㄩㄝˊ | feudal title or rank | v3,p2037#06 | p.689#29 | |
| 劝 | 力+18 | 勧 劝 | quàn ㄑㄩㄢˋ | recommend, advise, urge | v1,p0382#18 | p.150#12 | p.200r1c04 |
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