Responsibility
(Author): Wang Li 王 力
Title
(chi): 王力古漢語字典
Details
(place)Beijing: (publisher)Zhonghuashuju, 2000
Identifier
WANG LI 2000
Topics
Comments
This standard dictionary includes short sections on synonym distinctions throughout. The work is uneven, the first part appearing to be much weaker than the second.
Information basis
CH
Electronic Version
Referred from
ABLE (p.102)[ compared with ne2ng 能 is not only ke3 可 which does differ in obvious ways with regard to passivisation of the verb it governs, but ke3 yi3 可以. It is in the latter contrast that serious misunderstandings are easy to find....]ABLE (p.976)[耐，能
See ENDURE]ABOVE (p.233)ACCUMULATE (p.941)[積，績]ACCUMULATE (p.946)[累，纍，絫]ADDICTED (p.1491)[e use of wine, da1n 酖 only to an excessive desire for wine. But given the scarcity of examples there is no way of being sure.
One feels that underdocumented distinctions should be listed differently or separately from distinctions that can be seen to be operative in the texts....]ADDRESS (p.1289)[irect speech by itself and is always followed by yue1 曰 when introducing speech. In fact, the situation is much more complicated, and we4i 謂 does introduce direct speech by itself without yue1 曰 many times even in LY, the special nuance being brought out in the translations below:
子謂子賤〔KZJY adds: 曰〕:君子哉若人!魯無君子者,斯焉取斯?
"The Master said of Zjia4n: 'What a gentleman, this kind of person! If there were no gentlemen in Lu3, how could he have acquired his qualities?" LY 5.3
One sees easily why the Jia1yu3 家語 added the yue1 曰: "What a gentleman, this kind of person" is unmistakably direct speech in the classical Chinese as in English. And the fact is there is no yue1 曰 in the LY text. Neither is there in the following:
子謂公冶長可妻也。雖在縲絏之中,非其罪也。以其子妻之。
"The Master said about Go1ngye3 Cha2ng: 'He is a suitable person to give someone to in marriage. Although he is in fetters, it is not his crime.' He married him off to his daughter." LY 5.1
The Lu4nhe2ng 論衡 does not recognise this construction and quotes our passage with yue1 曰 for we4i 謂 which certainly makes for easier reading.
子謂南容邦有道不廢。邦無道免於刑戮。以其兄之子妻之。
"The Master said about Na2n Ro2ng: 'When the Way prevailed in the state he was not cast aside. When the Way did not prevail in the state he avoided punishment and execution.' And he gave him his elder brother's daughter in marriage." LY 5.2
子謂子產有君子之道四焉:其行己也恭,其事上也敬,其養民也惠,其使民也義。
"The Master said about Zcha3n: 'He has four Ways of the gentleman: in his actions he is diligent; in his service for superiors he is respectful; in caring for the people he is generous; in deploying the people he is just." LY 18.8
One can see why one would want to avoid a form like z we4i Zcha3n yue1 子謂子產曰 to mean "The Master commented on Zcha3n saying:'...'". This is simply because such a form would be obviously bound to be misunderstood to mean "Confucius told Zcha3n: '...'".
子謂衛公子荊善居室。始有曰:苟合矣。少有曰:苟完矣。富有曰:苟美矣。
"The Master said about Prince Jng: 'He was good at living in houses. When he first had one he said: "It will do for the time being." When he had a somewhat larger one he said: "It has everything for the time being." When he had a sumptuous place he said: "It is beautiful for the time being."'" LY 13.8. Compare also LY 5.16 and 18.8 for the same construction.
Couvreur p. 213 indulges in a beautifully complex pattern of direct speech within indirect speech in his Latin paraphrase: "Magister aiebat Wei regni magnum praefectum Koung Tzeu king bene contentum esse domo sua;quum doeperit possidere aliquantulum, dixisse, 'Paululum comparavi;' quum aliquantulam copiam habuerit, dixisse, 'Fere completa est [opulentia mea];' quum abunde habuerit, dixisse, 'Fere splendidum est'." The question is precisely whether this way of construing the Chinese does or does not have any soundbasis in classical Chinese grammar. The answer is that traditional Chinese commentators have been consistently indifferent to our distinction.33 D.C. Lau 1983, p. 123 renders this indifference towards the problem of direct/indirect speech well in his translation, but he does not maintain that studied indifference in the punctuation of the Chinese text....]ADMIRE (p.233)[tract while 上 tends to be concrete and spatial is misleading as it stands. Sha4ng 上 is very often used in transferred abstract senses. The point is that sha4ng 尚 tends to be verbal and never has a purely spatial meaning at all....]AGAIN (p.60)[ claims that the word only came to mean "again" in the 近代 period. In fact, za4i 再 certainly does often mean "twice", but there is a wide range of current cases where the word means not "twice" but "a second time". Significantly, even the SHUOWEN explanation of the word suggests this second meaning.
2. WL does not begin to appreciate the basic differences between the two words for again. WL 99 glosses yo4u 又 as fu4 復. Compare this identification of meaning with the contrasts elaborated in SSC under the heading of AGAIN....]ALL: 凡 (p.987)ALL (p.35)[u4 俱 and ju4 具. The point is well taken....]ALL (p.38)[onymous is striking. The fact is that jie1 皆 generally means "all subjects, without exception" whereas jie1 偕 is originally a verb, and when used as an adverbial quantifier means "all subjects at the same time, all subjects together"....]ANNEX (p.25)ANT (p.1153)ARMY (p.1388)[is larger than shi1 師. This is misleading because shi1 師 "armed forces" is quite general and quite standardly is specified in terms to the three armies that make up a formal array of such armed forces:
ZUO Xuan 12.2.1 (597 B.C.); Ya2ng Bo2ju4n 721; Wa2ng Sho3uqia1n 521; tr. Watson 1989:86; revised tr. CH
夏六月， In summer, in the sixth month,
晉師救鄭。 the Ji4n army came to the rescue of Zhe4ng.
荀林父將中軍， Xu2n Li2nfu3 led the central army,
先縠佐之； Xia1n Gu3 assisted him.
士會將上軍， Shi4 Hui4 led the upper army,
郤克佐之； an Xi4 Ke4 assisted him.
趙朔將下軍， Zha4o Shuo4 led the lower army,
欒書佐之。 Lua2n Shu1 assisted him.....]ARREST (p.1439)[逮，捕，捉]ARRIVE (p.1435)[通，達]ARRIVE (p.70)[ct. This is not borne out by the fact.
2. There is a wide range of syntactic and semantic distinctions between da4o 到 and zhi4 至 which WL fails to note....]ARROGANT (p.1692)[d a4o 傲 is a matter of actions. THE MANY COUNTEREXAMPLES TO THIS NEED TO BE EXAMINED....]ARROWHEAD (p.1545)[鏑，di1 鍉，鏃]ASK (p.1273)[問，訊，詰]ASK (p.1287)[咨，諮，詢]ATTACK (p.19)BALDACHIN (p.971)[翳，蓋，屋]BANISH: 削籍 (p.2)BATHE (p.584)BELL (p.1519)[鈴，鐸]BELL (p.1556)[鏞，鑮]BIND (p.459)BIND (p.740)[fer analysis, and the word does seem to be metaphorical in sense in the difficult example presented....]BIRTH (p.737)[rast is clear enough, though. Cha3n 產 refers to what is born, grows where and when it is intended to grow or welcome to grow. She1ng 生 is the general word which has no such connotations....]BLADE (p.1527)[銳，鋩]BLIND (p.794)[瞍，矇，瞽]BOVINE (p.687)[hes between these two, both being long-haired and furry, but ma2o 犛 being black and known only in the south-western regions....]BREATHE: 吹 (p.750)BRIBE (p.1329)[of cloth whereas lu4 賂 tends to consist of other goods. This traditional view is not borne out by the primary source evidence. It sounds like a late rationalisation. Bribes lu4 賂 are frequently specified to consist of specialists like singing girls and music masters and lands, also by offers to senior positions.
2. WL claims that lu4 賂 can refer to property as such. I have not found such examples in pre-Buddhist literature, and indeed WL provide no example at all.. But I have not checked the examples in HYDCD.
3. WL maintains that the meaning "bribe" for lu4 賂 is a 後起義. This meaning is, of course, exceedingly common in early literature from ZUO onwards. Quoting a JINSHU example for this is most misleading....]BRIDGE (p.484)[nly used before Han times to refer to a bridge independently, its common use in place names does seem to indicate clearly that the word did mean bridge even in early times described in ZUO. HEGUAN does have 橋梁. The famous granary in ZUO at Ju4qia2o 句橋, I imagine, was not named after a large beam over a well, but rather a bridge....]BRIGHT (p.659)["to burn or scintillate". But zhuo2 焯 is so rare in early texts that it is impossible to check this generalisation....]BROAD (p.1571)[闊，寬]BROAD: 周 (p.1)BURY (p.858)[窆，塴，封，堋]BUY (p.1336)[g in one synonym group in pre-Buddhist times....]CARRIAGE (p.1400)[車，輿，輦，軒，軺，]CARRIAGE (p.1400)[軿，輜]CARRIAGE POLE (p.1397)[轅，輈]CARRY (p.1321)[main difference which is that fu4 負 often takes abstract objects, and re2n 任 became predominantly figurative, whereas he4 荷 and da4n 擔 are nearly always concrete. In fact, the inclusion of the marginal re2n 任 in this series is misleading, because the relevant meaning became obsolete at an early stage of the language....]CATCH (p.704)[catching wild animals one cannot use huo4 穫....]CAVITY (p.859)[窖，窌]CERTAIN: 必 (p.2)CHANGE (p.1305)[change", versus bia4n 變 "objective change". In fact, the dominant distinction is between deliberate change brought about for a purpose on the one hand, and natural change on the other. It ought to be mentioned that when referring to political change, bia4n 變 is highly "subjective" or as I would prefer to say "deliberate".
2. WL fails to bring out the contrast of ge1ng 更 referring to a change designed to ensure continuity, and ga3i 改 making a change in order to improve things....]CHANT (p.1290)[誦，諷]CHOOSE (p.1457)[選，擇]CITY (p.1463)[邑，都，國]CITY WALL: 郭 (p.2)COINCIDENCE (p.450)[e of shi4 hui4 適會 there seems to be no case of hui4 shi4 會適.
2. Whereas shi4 適 often intervenes between subject and predicate, hui4 會 alone can always be construed as adsentential, as far as we I can see. This marks a significant difference between these words....]COLD (p.63)[whereas le3ng 冷 hardly ever occurs, and also lia2ng 涼 is not a current word, and the natural suspicion is that really ha2n 寒 did cover everything from very cold to cool, but in fact, the connotation of ha2n 寒 always seems to have been negative or unpleasant thus excluding the pleasant cool breeze lia2ng fe1ng 涼風 which does get mentioned a few times in the literature....]COMBINE (p.1432)[連，聯，屬，綴]COMMAND (p.112)[ntric nature of the order called li4ng 令, as WL points out, but the crucial point that even in the case of a verbal command, li4ng 令 still does not focus on that verbal element and cannot be followed by a verb of saying....]CONCEAL (p.1459)[躲，避]CONTRACT (p.778)[盟，誓]CONTRARY: 相攻 (p.163)CORNER (p.1589)[陬，隅]CORNER (p.1595)[隩，隈]CORNER (p.846)[稜，柧]COUNTRYSIDE (p.1476)[野，鄙，都，郊]CREATE (p.69)[r investigation....]CROSS OVER (p.603)[s the the verb for to cross was always written du4 度. But from Han times onwards du4 渡 was already very common. This does indicate that some of the orthography of the older texts does retain ancient features of the writing system, even in the received literature....]CROSSROADS (p.1203)[衢，衝]CULTIVATE (p.30)[n is very interesting: I have never seen xiu1 修 written for an intended xiu1 脩 "meat"....]CUP: 觴 (p.571)DANCE (p.1028)DECLINE: 弱 (p.4)DEFECT (p.720)[y rare and refers to defects in general only by poetic licence. Xia2 瑕 is quite common and is regularly used in figurative abstract, even psychological senses like "moral flaw, moral blemish", also verbally
1. The use of dia4n 玷 as a polite verb is post-Han....]DEFECT (p.952)[ault" the graph used in ancient times was que1 闕. In fact, the graph que1 缺 is also quite current in pre-Buddhist texts, although que1 闕 is more frequent....]DEITY (p.17)[nant in the meaning "become an immortal", whereas she2n 神 only occasionally has a comparable meaning....]DESCENDANT: 子孫 (p.162)DESIRE (p.1323)[goods", and la2n 婪 "greed for food" postulated by the old CC commentary is unsupported by any pre-Buddhist evidence. WL's claim that these were the original nuances of the word mechanically repeat a tradition without ascertaining its empirical basis. From a methodological point of view, this is a seriously misleading method. WL records a distinction which has not been operative at any recorded stage of the language....]DESTROY (p.617)[ transitive verb. In fact, however, wa2ng 亡 is common as a causative verb "cause to be ruined". Wa2ng 亡 is quite commnon as a transitive vrb, but the same time it remains remarkable that suo3 wa2ng 所亡 "what is lost" does not seem to mean "what is destroyed", neither does wa2ng zhi1 亡之 come to mean "destroyed it"....]DIE (p.5)[imary meaning of wa2ng 亡 to be "go into exile" and derives the current reference to death from this. This is certainly less than plausible. There is nothing plausible in the construction of death as exile, but wa2ng 亡 currently means "to be lost, to go lost", and that is indeed the much more likely source of the reference to death, pace Dua4n Yu4ca2i. Incidentally, wu2 亡 "be no more, cease to exist" would have been the much more plausible derivation, but there is no doubt that wa2ng 亡 is the word that refers to death, and not wu2 亡. And since as a rule we have no sound basis on which to decide which reading must apply in a given context, this makes discussion of examples excruciatingly difficult, but not actually the quotation adduced by WL: 今亡亦死 "If we run away not we shall die (and if we carry out our big plan we shall also die)". The problem here is that wa2ng 亡 does not have the relevant meaning of death at all. Thus the example is irrelevant....]DIE: 夭 (p.9)DILIGENT (p.1294)[ sparseness and carefulness in the use of language whereas she4n 慎 refers to intellectual sincerity and strenuous severe effort. In fact, ji3n 謹 is a technical term for the opposite of sparseness in the use of language, i.e. the meticulous and almost fastidious making explicit of things that might seem superfluous, as in ji3n zhi1 謹之 "be meticulous about something" e.g. a date: 謹而日之 "record the day meticulously". Moreover, the speech radical and LY 10.1 not withstanding, and quite predominantly, ji3n 謹 does not refer to any diligence with language at all. It seems perniciously dangerous to follow tradition and take the radical to indicate basic meaning. Basic meaning must emerge from attested usage....]DISCUSS (p.1281)[ lu4n 論 to be one of formality versus informality of discussion. In fact, lu4n 論 is not primarily dialogical in nature at all, and the word only refers to dialogue by a relatively rare extension. Ta2n 談, on the other hand, is by no means limited to dialogue, and the distinctive feature of the word is its predominant pejorative nuance "chatter"....]DISCUSS (p.1284)[ome decision, whereas lu4n 論aims at a judgment. One may add that the main difference here is that yi4 議 refers to a formal discussion in council, whereas lu4n 論 refers to a disquisition quite generally....]DISTANT (p.1450)[n yua3n 遠 but fulfilled the same functions during this earlier period. The evidence for this is extremely slim, and what evidence there is tends to suggest that xia2 遐 was a much more poetic word than the jejune and neutral yua3n 遠.
2. Ya2o 遙 does not have any current meaning 久遠 in the sources I have investigated. The word is poetic and refers to a spatial - often figurative and metaphysical - remote distance....]DON'T (p.83)[e verbs after 勿 do have objects, and the precise conditions under which the word is NOT a prohibitive negation....]DOOR (p.1574)[扉，扇，闔]DRUNK (p.1491)DUCK (p.1742)DUMB (p.757)EARNEST (p.1273)[誠，信，訊
1. Xu4n 訊 does not belong in this series.]EGO (p.9)[us apart from the fact that wu2 吾 cannot occur in object position. In fact, the two groups are totally different from each other semantically in three striking ways:
A. Wo3 我 and wu2 吾 can be used for the plural, the others cannot.
B. Wo3 我 and wu2 吾 have very common and philosophically important impersonal uses like German man, English you, French on, whereas the others can never be used in this way.
C. Wo3 我 is assertive ("I for my part"; "our party in the conflict") whereas all the other words never are.
2. WL claims that zhe4n 朕 and wo3 我 are synonymous in pre-Qin Chinese. But zhe4n 朕 is a dialect word very unlike the colourless wo3 我, and especially, zhe4n 朕 is never used impersonally or contrastively in the way indicated above....]EMBELLISH (p.188)[g "pretend" these characters are not interchangeable....]ENCOUNTER (p.1438)[ce to face contact: 迎面碰見....]ENDURE (p.976)[能，耐]ENEMY (p.16)[tween cho2u 讎and qiu2 仇 clear. The crucial contrast is that whereas both CAN refer to mortal enemies, cho2u 讎 has a more general application and refers occasionally to a friendly mate, or to mere opponents, like di2 敵, and even where the word does refer to an enemy, the emphasis is not normally on him being a mortal enemy....]ENGRAVE (p.1536)ENTER (p.57)[ into" in any pre-Buddhist source is certainly right, but of course this point does not establish any synonymy relation for classical Chinese in pre-Buddhist times. The words have nothing to do with each other in our period....]ESPIONAGE (p.1564)ESTIMATE: 意/憶 (p.83)EUNUCH (p.1570)[閹，豎]EVENING (p.176)EXPLAIN (p.1290)[諭，喻]EXPLAIN (p.1425)[敘，述，陳，說]EXPLAIN (p.1507)[解，釋]EYE (p.788)[alid argument concerning the meaning of the word. WL is highly misleading on this....]FACE (p.1318)[and appearance as expressive of emotions whereas ma4o 貌 refers to face and appearance as external appearance as such. The word for the face as expressive of emotions is se4 色, not ro2ng 容. Ro2ng 容 usually refers to general dynamic appearance only occasionally to the face specifically. Ma4o 貌 is static and refers to an outer shape or form, whereas ro2ng 容 is always dynamic and often inclusive of comportment and proper behaviour, hence the combinations ro2ng zhi3 容止 and ro2ng do4ng 容動.
2. Ma4o 貌 never refers comes close to referring to the face as such. The word differs in this from ro2ng 容 which one is sometimes tempted to take to refer to the face as such....]FAREWELL (p.1428)[遣，送]FATHER-IN-LAW: 丈人 (p.893)FEAR (p.742)[ synonymous. In fact, they differ clearly in basic semantic content. We4i 畏 is basically a state of fear of what inspires awe and respect, perhaps shuddering awe, and indeed there are many cases where the meanings of the words hovers between fear and respect, encompassing elements of both; ko3ng 恐 is momentary and powerful basically terrified fear of what is simply overpowering, although these words have occasional "blunted" or neutralised usages where they refer to generalised fear; and ju4 懼 is momentary fearful concern about an impending danger, thus a much weaker form of ko3ng 恐. The cases where these words are interchangeable semantically are few.
2. WL claims that it is characteristic of ko3ng 恐 and ju4 懼 that these have causative uses, but we4i 畏 is also used in such causative senses "inspire fearfuyl awe in people". Moreover, all these words are current as transitive non-causative words, contrary to what WL suggests....]FIRE (p.670)[y ya2n 炎 has a few usages where the word seems to refer to a flame....]FIREWOOD (p.1106)[薪，蕘，樵，柴]FIVE: 伍 (p.116)FIVE (p.18)[the parallel with shi2 什 is misleading....]FLATTER (p.1285)[ttery" and cha3n 諂 "flattering behaviour of any kind". The useful third term to introduce would be me4i 媚 which focusses on gesture and attitude, as well as ni4ng 佞 which focusses entirely on skilful and polished rhetorical flattery....]FLEE (p.1431)[逃，遁，逸，逋]FLOAT (p.570)FLOURISH (p.1114)[薾，]FLOWER (p.1126)[蘤，花，華，葩]FLY (p.971)[inction between these two which is based on learned commentaries rather than textual observation. The fact that two commentaries copy each other on this point does not strengthen the case....]FOLLOW (p.1455)[遵，循]FOOT (p.1353)[ same word....]FOOT (p.1354)[蹠，跖]FOOTPRINT (p.1427)[蹟，跡，蹤]FOOTWEAR (p.240)[terminological changes within the field of the vocabulary of footwear. However, it does appear that the late xie2 鞋 differs from the other words not only in its late currency but also in the fact that the shoes involved always have shoelaces. However, this is a fine point that needs further research....]FRAGRANT (p.1675)[l fragrance and xia1ng 香 comes increasingly to refer to artificial fragrance or intended fragrance....]GALLOP (p.1678)[馳，驅]GATE (p.1561)[門，戶]GENERATION (p.17)[urrently adverbial and has some other usages....]GIVE (p.1326)[eriors
SHU 16.19
于後 Afterwards,
公乃為詩以貽王 the prince made an ode and presented it to the king,...]GO TO (p.295)[ted by LEAVE, the difference being that wa3ng 往 is "to leave for, set out for", whereas qu4 去 is "to leave, go away from"....]GO TO (p.7)[ objects. For OBI this is manifestly wrong, for pre-Buddhist Chinese we have found many examples of wa3ng 往 with a direct object. When WL repeats that wa3ng 往 only became a transitive after the medieval period this is certainly quite mistaken.
2. Ya1n wa3ng 焉往 "where did he go" is common and should perhaps be taken as involving an indirect object, as WL assumes, but he2 wa3ng 何往 does of course occur in SHI, as WL fails to notice.
3. WL 7 takes the basic meaning of fu4 赴 to be 將身投入"throw one's body into", but the essential elements are a. speed and b. risk, and there is no suicidal nuance....]GOOSE (p.1733)[鵝，鴻，雁]GOURD (p.730)[4 瓠 and pa2o 匏 were taken to refer to the same plant....]GREEN (p.1623)GRINDSTONE (p.809)[砥，厲，礪]GRUEL (p.1662)HAND UP (p.1321)[eror whereas xia4n 獻 refers to giving a respectful gift to anyone. In fact, all courts had the go4ng 貢 system, and the crucial point is that go4ng 貢 refers to the formal and ritual presentation of what is owed as tribute, whereas xia4n 獻 can refer to anything one wishes to respectfully give to superiors....]HAT (p.266)[ 帽 generally a hat worn for convenience. But the point is that ma4o 帽 is not a current word in pre-Buddhist Chinese....]HEAR (p.983)[聽，聞
See LISTEN]HIGH: 崇 (p.505)HINDER: 沮 (p.848)HOLD (p.157)HOT (p.667)[ates to humidity but fails to realise that the essence of the concept is twofold: firstly it relates always to climatic temperature only; and secondly it refers to perceived temperature. Any burning object is re4 熱, but no one would think of calling it shu3 暑 in classical Chinese....]HURRY (p.1247)[an also occasionally be read qu1....]ILLNESS (p.753)[痁，痎
1.]ILLNESS (p.753)[l opinion that bi4ng 病 is more serious than ji2 疾 by pointing out that ji2 疾 can certainly be mortal. In fact, the main difference is that bi4ng 病 primarily refers to a lasting medical condition, whereas ji2 疾 refers to an acute medical condition.
Now it is quite true that there are instances where the two words seem to be used interchangeably, as in
HF 22.21:01; jishi 435; jiaozhu 243f; shiping 757
張譴相韓， Zha1ng Qia3n was prime minister in Ha2n.
病將死。 He was ill and was about to die.
公乘無正懷三十金 Go1ngche2ng Wu2zhe4ng took along thirty cash
而問其疾。 and paid him a visit on account of his current state of sickness....]IN FRONT: 前 (p.2)INAUSPICIOUS (p.828)[妖，祅，孽，蠥]INJURY (p.754)[疻，痏]INSECT (p.1136)[虫，虺，蟲]INSECTS (p.1183)[螳蜋]INTENSELY (p.449)[rare to be treated in SSC....]IRRIGATE (p.571)[澆，沃]ISLAND (p.581)JUMP (p.1361)[跳，躍，踴，蛹]KNOW (p.1296)LACK (p.794)[ault" the graph used in ancient times was que1 闕. In fact, the graph que1 缺 is also quite current in pre-Buddhist texts....]LACK (p.954)[罔，網，网]LAMP (p.669)LEAN ON (p.34)[explain which. The fact that the words are not interchangeable in idioms does not necessarily show anything....]LEAN ON (p.65)[g semantic differentiation. However, pre-Buddhist evidence is scarce....]LEAP OVER (p.1370)LEATHER (p.1626)[革，皮，韋]LEATHER (p.774)[ir on, but this is not quite right:
ZUO Xi 14.4.2 (646 B.C.); Ya2ng Bo2ju4n 348; Wa2ng Sho3uqia1n et al. 246; tr. Legge 162
虢射曰： Guo2 She4 said,
「皮之不存， "When the skin has been lost,
毛將安傅？」 where can you place the hair?"
The fact is that pi2 皮 refers to the kind of skin on which fur naturally grows. That is quite a different matter. Pi2 ma2o 皮 is there not necessarily a synonym compound:
ZHUANG 28.1.4 Guo Qingfan 966; Wang Shumin 1118; Fang Yong 778; Chen Guying 744
冬日衣皮毛， In wintertime I wear skins and furs;
The opposition is explained again on p. 1626 in a different way!!!...]LEAVE (p.295)[ted by LEAVE, the difference being that wa3ng 往 is "to leave for, set out for", whereas qu4 去 is "to leave, go away"....]LEG (p.1351)LICK: 吮 (p.226)LIE DOWN (p.1356)LIQUID (p.562)[nese, but the word does not only refer to "body fluids" in those few examples we have in the non-medical literature, it can refer to edible liquids as in CC 吸飛泉之微液兮 "I sipped the subtle liquor of the Flying Spring". See also:
CC JIUSI 03:04; SBBY 554; Huang 294; Fu 256; tr. Hawkes 311;
吮玉液兮止渴， I sucked jade nectar to quench my thirst.
2. Zhi1 汁 does sometimes mean "drinkable juice", but the word is also very common in medical contexts, the difference between zhi1 汁 and ye4 液 in medical contexts remaining to be determined....]LISTEN (p.983)[ween ti1ng 聽 "listen" and we2n 聞 "hear". But while WL notes elsewhere that ti1ng 聽 often is "listen to with approval, approve", there is no recognition of the corresponding tendency for we2n 聞 to mean "hear with approval, learn". But a proper recognition of this is crucial in very many contexts....]LOOK (p.779)LOSE (p.1458)[遺，失]LUCK (p.833)[4 禍 "stroke of bad fortune, misfortune". The traditional rationalising gloss 爵命為福，賞賜為祿 is not relevant to most usages of the word and certainly not helpful for the interpretations of the texts where the words occur. HF is much earlier and certainly more relevant to current Warring States usage:
HF 20.10:03; jishi 341; jiaozhu 188; shiping 615
全壽富貴之謂福。 Achieving a full measure of long life, wealth and nobility is called good fortune.
Wa2ng Cho21ng has an important explanation:
LH 2; Liu 1990:10; Beida1979:22; Yang 1999:12; Zheng 1999: 209; Guizhou 1993: 21; Hunan 1997: 11; tr. Forke 2.37
禍福之至， The arrival of happiness and misfortune,
幸不幸也。 is a matter of good or bad luck.
故曰： Therefore it is said:
得非己力， Because one gets good fortune not through one's own efforts
故謂之福； therefore good fortune is called good fortune;
來不由我， because misfortune comes not from oneself
故謂之禍。 therefore misfortune is called misfortune.
2. The definition of fu2 福 as lu4 祿 is fair enough when lu4 祿 refers to blessings from Heaven, but even then the difference remains that fu2 福 refers to either a fortunate outcome, or a state of comfortable good fortune which are on occasion construed as the result of one's own actions, whereas lu4 祿 are apparently always blessings construed as coming from Heaven unaffected by human action. Re2n jie1 qiu2 fu2 人皆求福, but when one ga1n lu4 干祿 what one seeks is an official stipend that goes with public employment, not good fortune as such....]MAT (p.880)[ two which is that the xi2 席 is for a person to sit on, whereas the ya2n 筵 is not only for the xi2 席 to be placed on, but for the ji1 几 "low table" to be placed together with it. The association of the ya2n 筵 with the xi2 席 is ubiquitous....]MEAN (p.963)[subjective yi4 意 and objective yi4 義, but the main opposition between "subjective meaning" and "intention" is not brought out properly....]MEAT (p.988)[of animals, while ji1 肌 refers to the flesh of men. This is a misunderstanding. Re2n ro4u 人肉 is common in the literature. The salient feature in ro4u 肉 is not whose flesh it is, but whether this flesh is regarded under the aspect of edibility: 子肉也。我肉也。 is a famous statement by people who are about to eat each other. WL quotes Dua4n Yu4ca2i: 人曰肌，鳥獸曰肉, but whereas he was on the right track, he has not got things straight. And WL's repeated emphatic statement: 漢以後“肉”也可用於人 is manifestly wrong.
2. Ji1 肌 cannot be used for the meat of animals, but the word does get used to refer to the flesh of gourds and the like, and the word is also commonly used to refer to the skin only. The Tang reference for this usage in WL 989 is 1000 years too late....]MERCHANT (p.1328)MINISTER (p.1469)[郎，卿]MOIST (p.641)[濕，溼]MOULD (p.1541)[笵，鎔，法，型，模]MOUNTAIN (p.244)[岳，嶽]MOUNTAIN (p.256)[sha1n 山....]MOVE (p.1455)[遷，徙，移]NEAR (p.1424)[近，邇]NECK (p.1641)NEEDLE (p.884)[針，箴，鍼
1. The]NIGHT (p.176)NOT: 否 (p.655)OATH (p.778)[盟，誓]ONE (p.1)[a late rewriting of the original yi1 fa1 一發 which is preserved in a Tang stone version of the text. In fact, the meaning "once" for the graph yi1 壹 is perfectly standard in pre-Han times, although also the graph yi1 一 is also perfectly acceptable in this meaning. See ONCE.
2. As a survey of the attested meanings of yi1 壹 shows, this graph can be used for a wide range of the idiomatic meanings of yi1 一 and certainly not only for "to concentrate", as suggested in WL 1....]ONLY (p.931)[維，唯，惟]PAST: 前日 (p.2)PAST: 前 (p.2)PAVILION (p.1021)[a platform or anything of the kind....]PEACEFUL (p.595)[wo characters is predominantly when they refer to peacefulness and serenity. Tastelessness is not written da4n 澹 in the pre-Buddhist texts I have examined....]PEARL (p.714)[ smaller....]PEARL (p.726)[ p. 714!!!...]PEEP (p.1247)PIERCE (p.1323)PIT (p.859)[窖，窌]PLAN (p.1288)[計，謀]PLAN (p.698)[ean "plan, scheme", or when they mean "method".？？？？？...]POND (p.577)[l" the words are completely synonymous. This is certainly not so. Zha3o 沼 is a dignified word belonging to an elevated style, hence li2ng zha3o 靈沼 and never li2ng chi2 靈池. Zha3o 沼 is often deep and round, with fish typically diving deep into it, whereas chi2 池 can be elongated and curved, as in qu3 chi2 曲池 "winding lakes". The association of zha3o 沼 is with palaces and the like, that of chi2 池 is with platforms and orchards, gardens, orchards. There is no 園沼 nor is there a pu3 zha3o 圃沼. These are chi2 池. Lakes hu2 湖 are associated with chi2 池 "ponds" as sources for food, never zha3o 沼, which are too elevated to be used for such mundane purposes.
YTL 04.17.05; Wang 1992: 153; Wang 1995: 220; Lu: 235; tr. Gale 1931: 107;
食湖池， Indeed with him who feeds on the Nation掇 lakes and pools
Chi2 池 are often (though by no means always) mundane things, zha3o 沼 never are. Thus we always have the proverbial jiu3 chi2 酒池 and no jiu3 zha3o 酒沼. A king might go out to shoot birds at a chi2 池 "meandering lake" somewhere, but the zha3o 沼 tend to be near or within the confines of palaces and the like:
HSWZ 09.10.01; tr. Hightower 1951, p.298f
齊景公出弋昭華之池， Duke Ching of Ch剫 went on a shooting expedition to the lake at Chao-hua.
The constant reference to ga1o ta2i she1n chi2 高臺深池 suggests that the chi2 池 were those places where the earth for the platforms was taken, just as in the case of city walls....]POOR (p.862)[ut regular means of support is qio2ng 窮, and this may indeed refer to proper destitution, but the word may also refer to a temporary passing state of deprivation or an impasse, and this kind of poverty may be relative to expected affluence and thus not really poverty. Pi2n 貧 refers to the generally permanent status of someone of very limited means of subsistence, and the word cannot refer to a person who has come on hard times but is still rich by general standards as set of the class of really poor people. WL does not get to the nerve of the distinction....]PRAISE (p.1301)[4n 贊 "praise" for the later za4n 讚 which in fact is unattested in pre-Buddhist Chinese literature. The two terms compared in WL do not make a good natural pair to compare....]PRECIOUS (p.712)[ 寶 refers to something publicly recognised and objectively construed as a valuable treasure; zhe1n 珍 refers rather to a subjectively highly appreciated thing. A precious official gift tends to be ba3o 寶, never zhe1n 珍. A state treasure has to be a guo2 ba3o g國寶, never a guo2 zhe1n 國珍. What is kept in treasuries of state is standardly ba3o 寶, and if zhe1n 珍 were kept, this would be a display of subjectivism on the part of the ruler. Valuable possessions of all sorts, or wealth, do not constitute ba3o 寶 because such wealth may be judged unimportant. A large di3ng 鼎 is definitely a ba3o 寶 because it is impossible to doubt its significance and importanc. Such a di3ng 鼎would certainly not count as a zhe1n 珍. Zho4ng 重 "heavy, weighty" is a natural epithet for ba3o 寶, not for zhe1n 珍....]PRODUCE (p.1225)[s use of the word came to be written zhi4 製....]PROPERTY (p.1329)[財，貨，資]PROPERTY: 財 (p.246)PURSUE (p.1432)[逐 refers to the pursuit of wild beasts. The reference, here, should be specifically to Jiaguwen, becasuse the one occurrence in the old part of SHU refers to human objects, and the word does not come in SHI. Moreover, in ZUO, what is pursued by way of animals is very little indeed: fish, dogs and the like, and very little of the bovines, boar, tigers and the like the prevail throughout Jiaguwen. This kind of discontinuity of usage is quite interesting....]PUT (p.225)[ physical. This is not so, since there are several exaples like this:
SHI 201.2
將恐將懼， When there is to be fear and dread,
寘予于懷： You place me in the (bosom:) heart,
將安將樂， When there is to be peace and joy,
棄予如遺。 you cast me off and throw me away....]QUICK (p.1434)[迅，速，快，疾]READ (p.1303)[times to so4ng 誦 is not to read and intone but to recite....]REALITY (p.226)[ half-hearted and insubstantial as can be found in the dictionary....]REAP (p.704)RECORD (p.1395)[st times that we have only a slim basis to judge its meaning. (And incidentally, za4i 載 is an unusually slippery and diffuse word to intepret in ancient literature. But that is a separate question which does not really belong here.)...]RECORD (p.910)[nous in pre-Buddhist times....]RED (p.1341)[赤，朱，絳，丹，紅]REPORT (p.1279)[, it also has important generalised uses "to address", occasionally even with what is a question....]RESPECT: 庭 (p.3)RESURRECTION (p.738)[甦，酥，蘇，zi4]RETURN (p.1424)[側重轉身往回來。In fact the situation is quite the opposite. Hua2n 還 is mostly inchoative and often refers to the ongoing process, and the refers to the action of turning back so as to return, and only in a minority of cases is the word used generally to refer to the completed action of returning. Fa3n 返, on the other hand, is clearly perfective and refers to getting back to where one came from....]REWARD (p.1334)[ve to an inferior 只表明為上之施予，不問有功無功. This is misleading, since ci4 賜 is often explicitly in recognition of personal moral merit, worth and desert, whereas sha3ng 賞 is directed at specific meritorious achievement.
HF 14.07:11; jiaoshi 224; jishi 249; jiaozhu 135; shiping 490
使民以功賞 they bring it about that people are rewarded for their achievements
而不以仁義賜； but do not receive gratuitous gifts for moral excellence;
Occasionally, ci4 賜 is also in recognition of a meritorious action:
HF 30.32:01; jishi 551; jiaozhu 322; shiping 955
“有能徙此南門之外者， 毣s for the person who is able to shunt this thing outside the South Gate
10賜之上田、上宅。”
Rewards to others than the king's public servants are standardly called ci4 賜:
HF 32.10:01, jiaoshi 480; jishi 625; jiaozhu 370; shiping 1084
宋王與齊仇也， The King of So4ng was on enemy terms with Q
築武宮。 and he built a military academy.
謳癸倡， Singer Gu led the singing
行者止觀， so that passers-by stopped to look
5築者不倦。 and the builders were untiring.
王聞， When the King heard about this
召而賜之。 he summoned the man and gave him presents.
In fact, even a senior minister could be rewarded in terms of ci4 賜 as reported by a senior minister who was given a fine vehicle:
HF 33.09:02; jiaoshi 527; jishi 679; shiping 1179; jiaozhu 411
曰： He said:
“君謀欲伐中山， "The ruler is making plans and wants to launch a formal attack on Zho1ngsha1n.
10臣薦翟角 I have recommended D Jia3o
而謀得果； and the plan achieved the desired result;
且伐之， when we were about to launch our formal attack
臣薦樂羊而中山拔； I recommended Yue4ya2ng and Zho1ngsha1n was taken.
得中山， when we had won Zho1ngsha1n
憂欲治之， we were worried and wanted to govern the place properly
15臣薦李克而中山治： so I recommended L Ke4, and Zho1ngsha1n was well-govverned.
是以君賜此車。” That is why the ruler has conferred on me this vehicle."
Rewards and gifts are both regularly signs of appreciation, although there is the gratuitous gift of kindness: 慈惠之賜:
HF 45.05:10; jiaoshi 108; jishi 939; jiaozhu 615; shiping 1564;
賞賜， Rewards and presents
所以為重也； are ways to show one掇 deep regard for someone....]ROAR (p.1131)[哮，虓]ROCK (p.824)[ocks by the water, ji1 磯 and pebbles qi4 磧. The distinction is fair enough, but the words do not belong to one synonym group....]ROPE (p.946)[索，繩]RUB: 切 (p.500)RUINS (p.1132)[inally homophonous in archaic Chinese....]RULE (p.934)RULERS OF SHANG: 下乙 (p.183)RUN (p.1343)[行，走，奔，跑]SACRIFICIAL MEAT (p.1013)[d....]SACRIFICIAL MEAT (p.995)[ly in SHUOWEN and is a post-Han character....]SAD: 慘/憯 (p.794)SAD: 憯悽/慘悽 (p.794)SAUCE (p.1501)[醢，臡，醬]SCALES (p.1523)[銓，稱]SCALES (p.533)[nd he2ng 衡 "scales as such (without weights)". WL defines qua2n 權 as "秤（秤錘）", and this is confusing on the very core of the distinction, because che4ng 秤 does refer to the whole of the weighing contraption including the weights, not only the weights themselves, the 秤錘....]SEE (p.1248)[ In fact, the words are sometimes used interchangeably, but du3 睹 generally tends to emphasise clarity and distinctness of vision or perception.
2. WL fails to note that du3 睹 regularly means to "visit"....]SEEK: 相 (p.162)SELL (p.124)SELL (p.575)[omophonous, but since 沽 anciently had three, and in modern times still has two readings, this statement makes no sense.
2. WL claims that gu3 酤 is not used to refer to a merchant. This is not so. SHANGJUNSHU 2 has sha1ng gu1 商酤 "traders and wine-merchants", and along similar lines we have the current tu2 gu1 屠酤 "butchers and wine merchants"....]SHAMAN (p.1248)SHAME (p.1420)[羞，恥，辱]SHAPE: 相 (p.163)SHEATH (p.1531)SHIELD (p.785)[ady current in OBI. Shu3n 盾 gradually came to replace ga1n 干 as the standard term from early Warring States times onwards, and the word was sometimes written shu3n 楯. There is only one isolated case of shu3n 盾 in SHI, and the word is not at all common in these early times.
2. It is disconcerting to have to point out that in the meaning "shield" the correct reading for 盾 is shu3n and certainly not du4n as in the personal name Zha4o Du4n, according to both Qie4yu4n and Jingdia3nshi42we2n. I say this is disconcerting because in general I have thought I had good reason to declare the phonetic material in WL authoritative....]SHOULD NOT (p.25)SIT (p.1377)[rrectly, but omits the crucial point that du1n 蹲 in the meaning "squat" is rare indeed in pre-Buddhist literature on the one hand, and that there is a crucial difference in decorousness between the words in question: zuo4 坐 is formal and correct, du1n 蹲 is informal but acceptable and unprovocative, ju4 踞 is highly informal and provocatively so. There is nothing self-evident in the social valuation of du1n 蹲....]SKIN (p.774)[ion "skin", and ge2 革 is always treated "leather" where the fur is removed. In our system this does not make them synonyms....]SLANDER (p.1290)[h used for justified criticism in early texts, and that from Han times onwards the words tend to be used less and less for criticism and more and more for unwarranted criticism or slander. In fact, fe3i ba4ng 誹謗 is a current word for slander, but the two words differ considerably. Fe3i 誹 refers to censure or criticism and has yu4 譽 "give praise to" as a very high frequency regular antonym. Ba4ng 謗 never has an antonym yu4 譽, and the word does very often refer to unwarranted slander and vilification rather than criticism. Thus fe3i 誹 "popular censure, criticism" is significantly absent in CC, where ba4ng 謗 "malicious slander" is ubiquitous. I have not found a single instance where fe3i 誹 refers unambiguously to malicious slander.
2. Moreover, WL claims that ba4ng 謗 is public whereas fe3i 誹 is popular but private and mumbling. The evidence for this is unclear. The contrast between ba4ng 謗 involving malice and fe3i 誹 focussing primarily on disapproval fe1i 非 as such is much clearer....]SLANT (p.415)[orted to have 斜 for xie2 邪 does not affect the general rule that xie2 斜"slanted" is completely unattested in early literature, and that when it is attested in the medical literature it is physical, and that xie2 邪 "deviant, immoral, wicked" is common and always figurative in meaning. WLs comment is thus quite misleading when it says 古本通用....]SLEEP (p.225)[crouching over a table and the like, and for sleeping in general. By HF times the word clearly is the dominant general word to use....]SMELT (p.1527)[銷，消 are 同源詞]SOLDIER (p.90)[ referring to soldiers: ZUO 徒兵千 "one thousand footsoldiers", contrary what WL claims....]SOLDIER: 和 (p.4)SONG[ local folksongs when used as nouns. But ya2o 謠 is predominantly used for children's ditties, to2ng ya2o 童謠 in pre-Buddhist times, whereas o1u 謳 is never used to refer to any such thing and refers regularly to popular work-songs as used, for example, by builders or men who milk cows, and it would appear that such songs could also be about emperors and kings....]SOUND (p.983)[oduced by man singing, and yi1n 音 the sound of musical instruments. But LY's famous 弦歌之聲 makes it clear that things are not this easy. And HF 鼓鐸之聲 "sound of drums and hand-bells" makes it plain that it is plain wrong. Moreoever, we have
HF 28.02:07 不聽鐘石之聲 "he did not listen to the sound of bells and musical stone instruments".
Thus the traditional rationalisation is highly problematic....]SPEAK (p.1278)[r a person spoken to. In fact, ya2n yu2 言於 regularly means "speak to (a person of higher status)", and SSC records 62 instances of this.
ZUO Xi 30.3.2 (630 B.C.); Ya2ng Bo2ju4n 479; Wa2ng Sho3uqia1n et al. 356; tr. Watson 1989:65; revised tr. CH
佚之狐言於鄭伯曰： Yi4 Zhi1hu2 delared in front of the Earl of Zhe4ng:
2. In many contexts ya2n 言 is to speak up and to formally propose or suggest something, typically to a superior. Yu3 語 does not have such usages and is almost always informal. Formal serious discussion with question and answer tends to be ya2n 言and not yu3 語.
3. WL claims that that for "proverb, saying" one generally uses yu3 語 and not ya2n 言. SSC has over 50 examples where ya2n 言 means "saying". Zuo Zhao 27.2.3(516 B.C.) Ya2ng Bo2ju4n 1483; Wa2ng Sho3uqia1n et al.1368 tr. Legge:721
「上國有言曰： "The upper States have a saying
『不索， that if you do not seeek for a thing
何獲？』 you will not get it."
The special feature of the sayings ya2n 言, regularly introduced by yo3u ya2n 有言 "there is/was a saying", is that they tend to be located or even attributed as bon-mots or geflgelte Worte to a person or even an author. Yu3 語 on the other hand is only once in SSC attributed to someone specific (the people of the state of So4ng), and the word generally tends to refer to current popular sayings even when the phrase bi3 yu3 鄙語 is not used.
4. WL compares“言”和“語”. But it remains quite unclear whether the reference is to yu3 語 or yu4 語, two very different words. When WL talk about the nominal uses of 語 the reference must be to yu3 語, whereas when they speak of the meaning "tell" for 語 the reference is to yu4 語. As a result the article is a complete mess.
This example shows up clearly that the method of attaching synonym discussions to words rather than to words under a given interpretation is manifestly wrong and thoroughly confusing....]SPROUT (p.1127)[ally. In fact, the word is very rare indeed, being mostly current as part of the compound 萌芽 in pre-Buddhist texts, and both the compound and the word are repeatedly used verbally. (LSCQ, CQFL, LIEXIANZHUAN)...]STAIRS (p.1596)[餘，階，陛]STATE (p.1464)[ territorial concept.No, there isn't in jiaguwen....]STATES (p.1053)[r Chu3. But it is not true that HF uses mainly Ji1ng: Chu3 is used ca. 64 times, Ji1ng something like 80 times depending on what editions one bases oneself on....]STEAL (p.778)[rete and banal petty theft and is not at all synonymous with da4o 盜 which is robbery in general and may refer to large-scale highway banditry and robbery.
2.
LH 33.14.3; Liu 529;
攻城襲邑， Attacking a city, harassing a town,
剽劫虜掠， robing and pillaging,
發則事覺， once it happens, this event will be found,
道路皆知盜也。 and all the wayfarers know the robbers.
穿鑿垣牆， But piercing a wall,
狸步鼠竊， sneaking like a cat, and stealing like a rat,
莫知謂誰。� (when this happens,) nobody know who do this.�...]STEEP (p.1585)[峭，峻]STINK (p.1019)[ cho4u 殠 for putrid smell in SHUOWEN is actually used in HANSHU as well....]STOREHOUSE (p.859)[窖，窌]STRANGE (p.745)[ation from a norm (only by extension positive deviation), any kind of strangeness, whereas qi2 奇 typically indicates positive deviation and sometimes even uniqueness.
2. WL fails to make it clear whether the reference is to the word ji1 奇 or qi2 奇....]STREET (p.1203)[街，巷，衖]STRING (p.916)[弦，絃]SUPERIOR: 上 (p.963)SURRENDER: 下 (p.2)SURVEY (p.1252)[ the subjective attention and la3n 覽 on comprehensiveness of coverage. In fact the main difference is that la3n 覽 is typically downwards from a higher perspective, and that la3n 覽 clearly tends to emphasise an aesthetic dimension of gaining a full view of something whereas gua1n 觀 typically emphasises detailed information gained through observation.
2. WL sees wa4ng 望 as referring to viewing something from a distance. This is true enough, but it is my impression that an important general nuance of the word is complementary to la3n 覽 "gaze down all over", so that wa4ng 望 often comes to mean "look up to from afar", although there are generalised uses where wa4ng 望 refers to looking down into the distance e.g. from a mountain, and at sheep, with no nuances of admiration whatsoever.
3. Note incidentally that la3n 覽 is extremely common from Han times in the meaning "to read with proper appreciation" which is lacking in WL....]TAX: 三歸 (p.285)TEACH (p.1279)[pecial feature of jia4o 教 is the element of coercion qia2ngzhi4 強制. In fact, one is practical instruction and training, not normally focussing on the coercion or even the threat of force, and the other is intellectual teaching.
Occasionally, jia4o 教 does have a general meaning where even a subordinate can jia4o 教 a ruler, the point being not coercion or even power, but rather professional or technical (rather than moral) authority:
HF 13.03:01; jiaoshi 297; jishi 238; jiaozhu 123; shiping 467
昔者吳起教楚悼王以楚國之俗曰： In ancient times Wu2 Q taught King Da4o of Chu3 the customs of Chu3, saying:
HF 32.15:01; jiaoshi 486; jishi 631; jiaozhu 375; shiping 1094
客有教燕王為不死之道者， A foreigner was teaching the King of Ya1n the way of immortality....]TEARS (p.587)[hat was late to arise. But the word does come in ZGC, HF and early Han texts.
2. Very curiously, WL omit qi4 泣 which is a common word for tears in the early period....]TEMPLE (p.832)[sages where tia1o 祧 would appear to be used...]TEN (p.15)[ graph shi2 什 is current, and this is inconsistent with the account in WL 15.
2. WL 15 claims that shi2 什 is always a collective noun, but the word is common as a transitive verb as well as an adnoun....]THIEF (p.778)[ to kill, but the word does not specifically refer to a hired assassin but to a robber or thief. The word has no standard figurative or metaphorical meanings. Ze2i 賊 regularly refers to a hired assassins, indeed the word regularly means "to assassinate", and crimes against property are not the primary business of the ze2i 賊 "bandit, villain; foe; hired assassin", and the word is regularly used in derived figurative senses referring not even to persons but to inimical social factors....]THIS (p.228)[honous in classical Chinese. The reminder of this in WL 227 is useful. However, it stands to reason that WHEN 實 is used as a loan character for 寔 it should perhaps all the same be read in the pronounciation of the latter word. The point needs systematic investigation....]THREATEN (p.1427)[i1 逼 indirect pressure and p4o 迫 direct pressure. This comes close, but bi1 逼 is often very direct pressure, and the main difference is in po4 迫 referring to coercion involving threats, and is mostly used in the passive to refer to someone being exposed to such undue coercion, whereas bi1 逼 refers to more emotional pressure, normally without that element straightforward coercion, and the word is usually used as a transitive verb....]THREE (p.98)TIE TO (p.32)TILE (p.732)[ch are not in BIG5....]TIRED (p.1114)[That 芡 can be used for 苶 is not documented under 芡, nor is it in HYDCD, but it may be true all the same as a scribal error....]TOAST (p.1493)TOMBSTONE (p.814)[碑，碣]TOOL (p.485)[器 always refers to containers. This is clearly not so: 百工之銳器 does not refer to containers. Examples of this sort abound....]TOOTH (p.681)[at the front teeth are chi3 齒 whereas the side teeth are ya2 牙: 門牙稱齒，其餘的稱牙. But as Ko3ng Yi3ngda2 already pointed out, primarily the large agressive teeth like the fangs of a fierce dog are ya2 牙, and even the front teeth of a rat, because of their prominence, are ya2 牙. Ko3ng's definition, which WL quote, is right: 頷上大齒謂之牙, and the trouble is that WL do not realise that this explanation is quite inconsistent of with the traditional explanation of ya2 牙 as all teeth other than front teeth....]TRANSMIT (p.1452)[there are practically no good examples in pre-Buddhist literature of di4 遞 in the meaning "hand over"....]TREE (p.456)[l derived meanings of mu4 木 like "simple" and so on, in their nominal meanings referring to a tree, shu4 樹 and mu4 木 are synonymous. In fact, the semantic distinction between these nouns is very clear, mu4 木 being able to function both as a count noun "tree" and as a mass noun "timber", whereas the noun shu4 樹 never means anything remotely like "timber"....]TREE, KINDS (p.1053)[r the same tree....]TROWEL (p.1512)[圬，槾，鏝]TRUE (p.785)[ng 真誠 these two words are synonymous, and it quotes SHUOWEN on zhe1n 真: 僊人變形而登天也 as evidence of what the primary meaning of zhe1n 真 is. This definition is highly interesting, of course, but not because it describes the basic meaning of the word. Change of form has nothing to do with that basic meaning, and rising to heaven has precious little to do with it either. The time has come to discontinue this practice of mechanical quotation of SHUOWEN for pretended primary meanings of words.
2. The special feature of zhe1n 真 comes out when you consider its antonym jia3 假 "fake"....]TWO (p.58)[ to natural pairs, repeated in WL, is not borne out by the facts. Our analysis shows a wide variety of cases that are clear and neat exceptions to this traditional rule.
2. WL does not mention the important use of lia3ng 兩 as a dual object quantifier. Other unmentioned syntactic differences abound, and interestingly lia3ng 兩 cannot be used in classifier constructions. Indeed, most of the peculiarities of lia3ng 兩 are restrictions with respect to a wide range of current uses of e4r 二....]ULCER (p.767)[癰，腫，疽]UNDERSTAND (p.1296)[t, whereas zhi1 知 is sometimes used in this colourless meaning, most of the time the word denotes a proper understanding of something.
2. WL claims that shi2 識 refers to a 比較深的認識. In fact, shi2 識 refers to the ability to recognise a person or a thing, and the word never refers to any deeper acquaintance or knowledge. Shi2 識 refers to an awareness, a general recognition, and in a number of cases to familiarity through acquaintance. The contrast with zhi1 知 "proper understanding" is very clear indeed.
3. WL claims that as a noun, shi2 識 means 知識、見解 in which meaning it is clearly distinct from zhi4 智 meaning "wisdom". It is a moot point when exactly which zhi1 知 must be read zhi4, but the nominal usages of the word in which it does mean "understanding, level of understanding" are abundantly documented in SSC....]VALLEY (p.1308)[溪，谿
1. 溪 is the 後起字.]VEHICLE (p.1397)[輂，車plus共on right]VESSEL (p.1551)[錠，鐙]VILLAGE (p.1484)[鄰，里，鄉，閭]VILLAIN (p.778)VINEGAR (p.1496)WASH (p.635)WATER VESSEL (p.731)[ed, whereas the yi1ng 罌 had a small mouth and wider body. It is not clear on what archeological evidence this distinction is based....]WAVE (p.576)[波，浪，瀾，淪]WAY (p.1443)[t lu4 路 is commonly used for any line of communication by which one reaches from one point to another, whereas da4o 道, even when used as a concrete word, is a always a more dignified term, in clear opposition to a merely convenient ji4ng 徑. LAO plays on this when it says 大道甚夷而民好徑 "the great way (Way) is even, but the people love the small paths"....]WEAK: 弱 (p.4)WEEP (p.119)[etween the action verb ku1 哭 "wail, lament" and the reaction qi4 泣"weep"....]WELCOME (p.1423)[迎，逆，迓]WHEN: 也 (p.344)WHITE: 堊 (p.4)WHO (p.215)[ are synonymous. This is not so for many interesting reasons. In 追我者誰也？they are certainly not interchangeable, shu2 孰 not being able to function predicatively.
2. Much more importantly, the two are not interchangeable in the following, where the pronoun shu2 孰 creates a comparative context in a way that she2i 誰 does not. Indeed, this is the basis semantic difference between the words:
HF 08.07:02; jiaoshi 707; jishi 123; jiaozhu 67; shiping 339
孰疏孰親？ who then is distant, who close?
3. Only she2i 誰 can be followed by zhi1 之, where it is by no means always clear how "personal" or "personified" the subject is, although WL are right, of course, that in general the reference is human or personified:
LAO 4
吾不知誰之子， One does not know not whose son it is.
4. Note that in the following the two question particles are not at all interchangeable. 誰好學 "who likes study" is not the same as 孰好學 "who is most fond of study":
LY 06.03; tr. CH
「弟子孰為好學？」 "Of the disciples, which one is most eager to study?"...]WICKED (p.1499)[醜，丑，惡]WICKED (p.415)[ely does not correspond to what we have found. The distinction in the graphs from early times is that the first is figurative and moral in meaning, the second literal and spatial....]WICKED (p.55)[ and xio1ng 兇 in the meaning "wicked", although this does not of course affect the pre-Buddhist stage of the language, where the latter meaning is absent....]WIN (p.55)[ous is obviously wrong, as is detailed in what follows in the same paragraph. The meanings involving "ability" are never written with 剋....]WINDOW (p.860)[窗，牖，向／鄉]WINGS (p.971)WITHDRAW (p.1429)WITHER (p.470)[枯 can refer more broadly to anything that dries out and rots, like fish, ga3o 槁 is more strictly restricted to the withering of trees....]WOMAN (p.186)[r one thing 宮婦 are not married, and for another we have HF: 宮婦不御者出嫁之， "Among the women in the palace he married off the one掇 he did not personally sleep with." There is not necessarily question of formal divorce in chu1 出, although probably there is. Compare HF:
“丈夫二十而室， "A man should start a family at twenty;
婦人十五而嫁。” a woman should get married at fifteen."...]WRITE (p.228)[re of shu1 書 which is that this word always refers to an act of writing down rather than an act of creating texts....]YOUNG: 弱 (p.5)