| Chinese Text Project |
| (Being different from ordinary men) | |
| 絕學無憂， | When we renounce learning we have no troubles. |
| 唯之與阿， | The (ready) 'yes,' and (flattering) 'yea;' |
| 相去幾何？ | Small is the difference they display. |
| 善之與惡， | But mark their issues, good and ill; |
| 相去若何？ | What space the gulf between shall fill? |
| 人之所畏， | What all men fear |
| 不可不畏。 | is indeed to be feared; |
| 荒兮其未央哉！ | but how wide and without end is the range of questions (asking to be discussed)! |
| 衆人熙熙， | The multitude of men look satisfied and pleased; |
| 如享太牢， | as if enjoying a full banquet, |
| 如春登臺。 | as if mounted on a tower in spring. |
| 我獨怕兮其未兆； | I alone seem listless and still, my desires having as yet given no indication of their presence. |
| 如嬰兒之未孩； | I am like an infant which has not yet smiled. |
| 儽儽兮若無所歸。 | I look dejected and forlorn, as if I had no home to go to. |
| 衆人皆有餘， | The multitude of men all have enough and to spare. |
| 而我獨若遺。 | I alone seem to have lost everything. |
| 我愚人之心也哉！ | My mind is that of a stupid man; |
| 沌沌兮， | I am in a state of chaos. |
| 俗人昭昭， | Ordinary men look bright and intelligent, |
| 我獨若昏。 | while I alone seem to be benighted. |
| 俗人察察， | They look full of discrimination, |
| 我獨悶悶。 | while I alone am dull and confused. |
| 澹兮其若海， | I seem to be carried about as on the sea, |
| 飂兮若無止， | drifting as if I had nowhere to rest. |
| 衆人皆有以， | All men have their spheres of action, |
| 而我獨頑似鄙。 | while I alone seem dull and incapable, like a rude borderer. |
| 我獨異於人， | (Thus) I alone am different from other men, |
| 而貴食母。 | but I value the nursing-mother (the Dao). |
| Character | Composition | Variants | Reading | Meaning | Hanyu | Kangxi | Cihai |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 絕 | 糸+6 | 𢇍 𠤉 绝 | jué ㄐㄩㄝˊ | cut, sever, break off, terminate | v5,p3396#04 | p.922#04 | p.1041r6c02 |
| 學 | 子+13 | 𢻯 斈 学 | xué ㄒㄩㄝˊ | Study, learn. / Doctrine, teaching. / School of thought. / School, place of learning. / Account, state. | v2,p1019#11 | p.280#28 | p.403r3c05 |
| xiào ㄒㄧㄠˋ | Instruct, teach. | ||||||
| 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 |
| 憂 | 心+11 | 𠪍 𨗫 懮 忧 | yōu ㄧㄡ | sad, grieved; grief, melancholy | v4,p2341#14 | p.401#26 | p.543r1c06 |
| 唯 | 口+8 | wéi ㄨㄟˊ | Only, exclusively. / Connective: although, even though. / Connective: because. / Particle used at the beginning of a sentence to express hope or desire. / Particle used at the beginning of a sentence to express confirmation. / Particle, no meaning. | v1,p0642#05 | p.193#17 | p.277r1c02 | |
| wěi ㄨㄟˇ | Sound of affirmation. / Affirm. | ||||||
| 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 |
| 與 | 臼+8 | 与 𢌱 𦦲 𠔔 | yǔ ㄩˇ | Give. / Follow, go along with. / Comrade, ally. / Association, contact. / Oppose. / Engage [an enemy]. / Approve, consent to. / Help. / Wait. / Preposition indicating passive tense. / Preposition: to, with. / Preposition: with. / Preposition: as. / Preposition: in, on. / Connective: and, with. / Connective: with its ... / Connective: or. | v1,p0251#04 | p.1004#13 | p.1113r2c03 |
| yù ㄩˋ | Participate, take part in. | ||||||
| yǔ ㄩˇ | Interfere in. | ||||||
| yú ㄩˊ | Auxiliary word: used at the end of a sentence to express questioning , exclamation, or a rhetorical question. / Auxiliary word: used in the middle of a sentence to express a pause. | ||||||
| 阿 | 阜+5 | 啊 | ē ㄜ | (7) 遲緩傲慢的應答聲。 Delayed and arrogant sound of acceptance. | v6,p4119#11 | p.1348#06 | p.1415r5c03 |
| 相 | 目+4 | xiāng ㄒㄧㄤ | Mutual. / In succession. / Together. | v4,p2470#13 | p.800#18 | p.945r1c01 | |
| xiàng ㄒㄧㄤˋ | Watch. / Appearance. / Fortune-telling by appearance. / Help, assist. / Guide for the blind. / Prime minister, most senior minister. / Ceremonial officer. | ||||||
| 去 | 厶+3 | qù ㄑㄩˋ | Leave, go away from. / Send away. / Remove, get rid of. / Banish, discard. / Lose, cease to possess. / Distance, separation. / Previous, past. / Later, after. | v1,p0384#08 | p.164#10 | p.232r1c04 | |
| jǔ ㄐㄩˇ | Collect, keep. | ||||||
| qū ㄑㄩ | Expel. | ||||||
| 幾 | 幺+9 | 𢆻 𢆼 几 | jǐ jī ㄐㄧˇ ㄐㄧ | how many? how much?; a few, some | v2,p1095#08 | p.342#14 | p.486r2c02 |
| 何 | 人+5 | hé ㄏㄜˊ | Ask, enquire. / What. / Who, which one. / How, in what way. / Why, for what reason. / Where, in what place. / How much, to what extent. | v1,p0130#04 | p.98#15 | p.97r2c04 | |
| hē ㄏㄜ | Criticize, condemn. | ||||||
| hè ㄏㄜˋ | Carry on one's back. / Bear, carry a burden. | ||||||
| 善 | 口+9 | 譱 𦎍 𠾄 𧮟 | shàn ㄕㄢˋ | Good. / Take to be good, like. / Good person. / Strong point, merit. / Perfect. / Gentle, kind. / Friendly. / Good at doing. / Improve, make good. / Control, regulate. / Food. | v1,p0660#02 | p.197#18 | p.282r3c04 |
| 惡 | 心+8 | 惡 亞 僫 恶 | è ㄜˋ | Evil. / Bad, not good. / Bad person. / Harm. / Vicious. / Turgid, fierce. / Ugly. / A poor harvest. / Disease, illness. / Uncomfortable, unhappy. / Dirt. / Excrement. | v4,p2307#12 | p.391#25 | p.535r4c01 |
| wù ㄨˋ | Hate. / Shame. / Avoid. / Slander, attack. | ||||||
| wū ㄨ | Interrogative pronoun: how, what. / Exclamation. | ||||||
| 若 | 艸+5 | 若 𦱡 𦱶 𧁇 | ruò ㄖㄨㄛˋ | Iris. / Same as 「北海若」 běi hǎi ruò ㄅㄟˇ ㄏㄞˇ ㄖㄨㄛˋ: Ruo, a god of the Northern Sea. / Go by, accord with. / Choose. / Like, similar to. / Identical, the same. / As good as, comparable to. / To, arrive at. / You, your. / This way, like this. / Regarding, as regards. / If, should it be the case. / Or, alternatively. / But, yet. / Adjectival suffix. | v5,p3187#07 | p.1023#12 | p.1130r1c03 |
| 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 |
| 所 | 戶+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 為 to indicate the passive tense. / Indicates an approximate number. / Number, number of times. / Meaning. | v3,p2259#01 | p.415#16 | p.556r1c01 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 不 | 一+3 | 不 𠀚 𠙐 | bù ㄅㄨˋ | (3.1) 否定副詞：用於動詞、形容詞等前面，表示否定。 Negational adverb, used before verbs, adjectives, etc. to indicate negation. | v1,p0011#06 | p.76#15 | p.30r1c01 |
| 可 | 口+2 | 歌 厥 | kě kè ㄎㄜˇ ㄎㄜˋ | may, can, -able; possibly | v1,p0567#07 | p.172#12 | p.244r1c02 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 荒 | 艸+6 | 𠃤 𠯚 | huāng huǎng kāng ㄏㄨㄤ ㄏㄨㄤˇ ㄎㄤ | wasteland, desert; uncultivated | v5,p3209#02 | p.1031#08 | p.1138r3c02 |
| 兮 | 八+2 | 𠔃 | xī ㄒㄧ | exclamatory particle | v1,p0241#06 | p.127#03 | p.160r5c01 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 未 | 木+1 | wèi ㄨㄟˋ | not yet; 8th terrestrial branch | v2,p1150#01 | p.509#05 | p.665r4c01 | |
| 央 | 大+2 | yāng ㄧㄤ | center, conclude, run out; beg | v1,p0524#06 | p.249#05 | p.368r2c03 | |
| 哉 | 口+6 | 才 | zāi ㄗㄞ | Begin, start. / Modal particle expressing exclamation. / Modal particle expressing questioning or a rhetorical question. | v1,p0611#07 | p.189#08 | p.270r2c01 |
| 衆 | 血+6 | 眾 𠍸 𠂝 众 | zhòng ㄓㄨㄥˋ | multitude, crowd; masses, public | v5,p3051#14 | p.1107#16 | p.1203r4c08 |
| 熙 | 火+10 | 煕 熈 | xī yí ㄒㄧ ㄧˊ | bright, splendid, glorious | v3,p2226#06 | p.680#10 | p.855r1c11 |
| 如 | 女+3 | rú ㄖㄨˊ | Go to. / According to, in accordance with. / Like, similar to. / As good as, comparable to. / Should. / Or, alternatively. / If, should it be the case. / As for, as regards. / Adjectival suffix. | v2,p1025#09 | p.255#21 | p.378r5c02 | |
| 享 | 亠+6 | 𠅠 | xiǎng ㄒㄧㄤˇ | enjoy | v1,p0284#08 | p.88#17 | p.78r4c02 |
| 太牢 | 大+1 牛+3 | 牢 𡘠 | tài láo ㄊㄞˋ ㄌㄠˊ | 古代祭祀宴會時，牛、羊、豬都具備為太牢。 Type of sacrifice requiring an ox, sheep, and pig. | v1,p0524#01 v3,p1802#06 | p.248#10 p.698#01 | p.354r5c01 p.869r1c01 |
| 春 | 日+5 | 萅 𦸬 旾 𣈤 | chūn chǔn ㄔㄨㄣ ㄔㄨㄣˇ | spring; wanton | v2,p1496#10 | p.493#06 | p.636r3c02 |
| 登 | 癶+7 | 𤼪 𤼷 豋 | dēng dé ㄉㄥ ㄉㄜˊ | rise, mount, board, climb | v4,p2760#11 | p.784#07 | p.924r5c05 |
| 臺 | 至+8 | 台 䑓 𡌫 㙵 | tái yí tāi ㄊㄞˊ ㄧˊ ㄊㄞ | tower, lookout; stage, platform | v4,p2817#06 | p.1002#05 | p.1112r2c02 |
| 我 | 戈+3 | 𠨂 𢦓 𢦠 | wǒ ㄨㄛˇ | First-person pronoun: I. / One's own side in general. / Expresses closeness. / Egoism, self-involvement. | v2,p1401#02 | p.412#01 | p.552r1c01 |
| 獨 | 犬+13 | 独 | dú ㄉㄨˊ | alone, single, solitary, only | v2,p1372#03 | p.719#25 | p.879r5c02 |
| 怕 | 心+5 | pà ㄆㄚˋ | to fear, be afraid of; apprehensive | v4,p2287#01 | p.380#16 | p.525r6c02 | |
| 兆 | 儿+4 | zhào ㄓㄠˋ | omen; million; mega; also trillion. China = million; Japan and Taiwan = trillion | v1,p0268#02 | p.124#03 | p.134r2c03 | |
| 嬰 | 女+14 | 孾 婴 | yīng ㄧㄥ | baby, infant; bother | v2,p1086#08 | p.273#04 | p.392r3c03 |
| 兒 | 儿+6 | 𠒆 儿 | ér er ㄦˊ ㄦ· | son, child, oneself; final part | v1,p0272#05 | p.125#03 | p.139r5c01 |
| 孩 | 子+6 | 咳 | hái ㄏㄞˊ | baby, child; children | v2,p1015#11 | p.279#15 | p.401r5c03 |
| 儽 | 人+21 | lěi ㄌㄟˇ | lazy; tired out, worn fatigued | v1,p0240#06 | p.122#08 | p.131r2c01 | |
| 歸 | 止+14 | 帰 归 𤾤 | guī kuì ㄍㄨㄟ ㄎㄨㄟˋ | return; return to, revert to | v2,p1446#15 | p.578#07 | p.739r6c01 |
| 皆 | 白+4 | jiē ㄐㄧㄝ | all, every, everybody | v4,p2647#01 | p.786#12 | p.735r5c01 | |
| 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. | ||||||
| 餘 | 食+7 | 馀 余 | yú yé ㄩˊ ㄧㄝˊ | surplus, excess, remainder | v7,p4456#09 | p.1420#25 | p.1492r3c03 |
| 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. | ||||||
| 遺 | 辵+12 | 𨗮 𨖽 𨗭 遗 | yí ㄧˊ | Lose, misplace. / Thing which has been lost or misplaced. / Omit, leave out. / Thing which has been omitted or left out. / Abandon, neglect. / Excrement. / Leave behind. / Things or people left behind. / Cause, invite. | v6,p3882#07 | p.1265#18 | p.1332r4c01 |
| wèi ㄨㄟˋ | Give, present. / Send, deliver (a message). | ||||||
| 愚 | 心+9 | yú ㄩˊ | stupid, doltish, foolish | v4,p2321#07 | p.395#12 | p.537r6c06 | |
| 心 | 心+0 | 㣺 忄 | xīn ㄒㄧㄣ | heart; mind, intelligence; soul | v4,p2267#01 | p.375#01 | p.521r1c01 |
| 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 |
| 沌 | 水+4 | dùn tún zhuàn chún ㄉㄨㄣˋ ㄊㄨㄣˊ ㄓㄨㄢˋ ㄔㄨㄣˊ | chaotic, confused; turbid, murky | v3,p1561#09 | p.610#10 | p.771r1c02 | |
| 俗 | 人+7 | 圱 | sú ㄙㄨˊ | social customs; vulgar, unrefined | v1,p0163#10 | p.105#09 | p.107r1c01 |
| 昭 | 日+5 | zhāo ㄓㄠ | bright, luminous; illustrious | v2,p1504#09 | p.493#22 | p.638r2c04 | |
| 昏 | 日+4 | 𣄾 𣄼 昬 | hūn mǐn ㄏㄨㄣ ㄇㄧㄣˇ | dusk, nightfall, twilight, dark | v2,p1492#03 | p.491#14 | p.633r4c01 |
| 察 | 宀+11 | 詧 | chá ㄔㄚˊ | examine, investigate; notice | v2,p0948#08 | p.290#16 | p.426r6c05 |
| 悶 | 心+8 | 㥃 懣 闷 | mèn mēn ㄇㄣˋ ㄇㄣ | gloomy, depressed, melancholy | v7,p4291#04 | p.389#05 | p.533r2c02 |
| 澹 | 水+13 | 淡 | dàn dán shàn tán dān ㄉㄢˋ ㄉㄢˊ ㄕㄢˋ ㄊㄢˊ ㄉㄢ | calm, quiet, tranquil | v3,p1762#01 | p.653#36 | p.834r5c01 |
| 海 | 水+7 | hǎi ㄏㄞˇ | sea, ocean; maritime | v3,p1627#01 | p.625#14 | p.795r4c04 | |
| 飂 | 風+11 | 𩘸 | liáo liú liù ㄌㄧㄠˊ ㄌㄧㄡˊ ㄌㄧㄡˋ | wind in high places | v7,p4491#11 | p.1414#20 | p.1487r2c05 |
| 止 | 止+0 | 只 | zhǐ ㄓˇ | stop, halt, desist; detain | v2,p1435#03 | p.573#24 | p.732r3c02 |
| 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 |
| 頑 | 頁+4 | 顽 | wán kūn ㄨㄢˊ ㄎㄨㄣ | obstinate, stubborn; recalcitrant | v7,p4359#08 | p.1401#04 | p.1476r2c03 |
| 似 | 人+5 | 𠚦 | sì shì ㄙˋ ㄕˋ | resemble, similar to; as if, seem | v1,p0127#02 | p.97#10 | p.95r1c04 |
| 鄙 | 邑+11 | 𠴿 | bǐ ㄅㄧˇ | mean; low | v6,p3792#08 | p.1276#18 | p.1345r4c05 |
| 異 | 田+6 | 異 𢄖 异 | yì ㄧˋ | different, unusual, strange | v4,p2540#05 | p.763#18 | p.916r1c02 |
| 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 |
| 貴 | 貝+5 | 𡭙 𧸋 贵 | guì ㄍㄨㄟˋ | expensive, costly, valuable | v6,p3632#09 | p.1206#15 | p.1271r6c01 |
| 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 |
| 母 | 毋+1 | mǔ mú wǔ wú ㄇㄨˇ ㄇㄨˊ ㄨˇ ㄨˊ | mother; female elders; female | v4,p2380#03 | p.588#25 | p.745r1c03 |
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