TLS - 漢學文典

Taxonomy of meanings for 位:　　

位 wèi (OC: ɢrubs MC: ɦʷɯi) 于愧切去廣韻：【正也列也莅也中庭之左右謂之位于愧切一】
- PLACE
  - nfigurativeplace, proper place
  - nabposition in the terrain, location
  - nabmathematical termCHEMLA 2003: position of numbers represented by counting rods on the calculating surface. JZ 8.3: 各從其位 "each in accordance with its place on the calculating surface". JZ 1.16, comm. Li Chunfeng: 列位無常 "for the allocation of (numbers of) positions on the calculating surface there is no invariant pattern". Thus " position" in this technical sense may on be defined along varying parameters: on the one hand the position may be concrete, on the calculating surface, versus abstract in the system of decimals. On the other hand, whenever a mathematical procedure is defined in relation to any pattern of numbers inscribed on the calculating surface, any position in that pattern may be referred to as a wèi 位. In fact, the technical "decimal" meaning of 位 derives from the more general "placement" meaning of 位. It turns out that 等 is the sub-class of vertical fields or columns. This enables us to distinguish between 位 "abstract place" and 等 "vertical row, column in the abstract", and 行 "concrete column of numbers". Being a kind of 位, the 等 can be referred to as a 位 and often is in later texts.By extension, 位 may be used as a general term (by Li Chunfeng) to refer to the number that occupies the given position rather than to the position itelf, in which case the word is used as a non-contrastive variable.
  - vtoNmiddle voicebe apportioned a proper place
  - object: what you do to a place>
    BE IN
    - vtoNfigurativereside in, be essentially part of, essentially belong toCH
  - specifically>
    STAND
    - vt+prep+Nhave one's position (somewhere) 位於前 "have one's position up front"
    - causative>
      FIX
      
      vtoNapportion a proper place
    - object: what you sit in>
      SEAT
      
      nthe place for a person to sit on, typically a place which indicates the incumbent's status or rank; specifically: ruler's seat
      
      nab.post-Nposition of an NCH
      - in hierarchy, at court, expecially high>RANK
        
        nab.adVin rank
        
        nabfigurativerank > stage, level (of development, attainment, etc.)
        
        nabsocial(abstract, not narrowly bureaucratic:) (social) position, or seat in the hierarchy (high or low)
        
        nabconcreteone's concrete rank in the hierarchy; respectable formal position in society
        
        nabdefiniteconcrete relative position in society
        
        nab.post-Nthe post/rank of NCH
        
        highest rank: member of imperial family>EMPEROR
        
        mathematical technical term: rank in the number grid>NUMBER
      - social, function>OFFICE
        
        feature attaching to>POWER
        
        nabsocialhigh official rank; position of power; specifically: ruler's position
        
        generalised abstract>ROLE
        
        nabsocialsocial role
位 li4《集韻》力至切，去至來。微部。
- =立 "stand"

Additional information about 位

說文解字: 【位】，𠛱中庭之左右謂之位。从人、立。【于備切】

Criteria

PLACE

1. The most general word referring to the location of something is chù 處 which may refer to the location in which a thing happens to be at some point in time, or to the place where something belongs, and the word refers to both abstract and concrete spatial location.

2. Suǒ 所 "proper place", when used pregnantly on its own, refers to the place where a thing basically belongs, where someone lives, and where something should be. This word was the most common word for a place in early literature. Quite frequently, the word refers not just to a place, but particularly to a building in a place.

3. Dì 地 is primarily a territory, and only by occasional extension the abstract location of something.

4. W4èi 位 sometimes comes to refer to the position in a terrain.

5. Chǎng 場 refers specifically to the location for certain activities like threshing etc.
BEAUTIFUL

[ABSOLUTE/GRADED]

[ACOUSTIC/VISUAL]

[ARTIFICIAL/NATURAL]

[[COMMON/RARE]]

[ELEVATED/VULGAR]

[GENERAL/SPECIFIC]

[HUMAN/NON-HUMAN]

[POETIC/PROSAIC]

1. The general word is měi 美 "handsome and admirable" (ant. è 惡 "ugly") which refers to anything concrete or abstract which is attractive or handsome in a dignified way, and the word often retains its primary culinary sense of "tasty".

[GENERAL], [GRADED]; [[COMMON]]

2. Lì 麗 (ant. sù 素 "unaodorned") is often restricted to physical objects, prototypically to clothes, and emphasises their balanced symmetric beauty, occasionally also - by analogy - the well-aligned symmetric beauty of mountains.

[ELEVATED], [NON-HUMAN], [VISUAL!]

3. Wén 文 (ant. zhì 質 "merely material") emphasises cultivated external as well as internal elegance as well as traditionalism.

[ARTIFICIAL], [ELEVATED], [NON-HUMAN], [VISUAL!]

4. Yǎ 雅 (ant. sú 俗 "vulgar") emphasises primarily external elevated elegance.

[ACOUSTIC!], [ARTIFICIAL], [ELEVATED+], [NON-HUMAN]

5. Hǎo 好 "comely, handsome" (ant. chǒu 醜 "ugly") refers indiscriminately to men and women, but the word is sometimes more general and even abstract in application and refers to attractive words or attractive moral qualities.

[HUMAN!], [NATURAL], [VISUAL]

6. Xiù 秀 "of vigorous and imposing beauty" focusses on flourishing and flamboyant beauty in analogy with that of flowers.

[ELEVATED], [NATURAL], [NON-HUMAN], [POETIC], [VISUAL]; [[RARE]]

7. Huá 華 "of striking and colourful beauty" (ant. sú 俗 "vulgar") focusses on flourishing and flamboyant superficial or only apparent beauty, on the analogy analogy with that of flowers.

[ARTIFICIAL], [ELEVATED], NON-HUMAN], [SUPERFICIAL], [VISUAL]

8. Zhuàng 壯 "stately" (ant. ruò 弱 "weak and unsightly") is virile beauty associated with strength and vigour. See STRONG

[NATURAL], [MARGINAL], [POETIC]; [[RARE]]

9. Jiā 佳 "of outstanding beauty" (NB: liè 劣 "unremarkable" is the ant. of jiā 佳 "outstanding", and not in the meaning of "outstandingly beautiful") emphasises comparative beauty compared to others in the same group.

[GRADED], [ELEVATED], [NATURAL], [POETIC]

10. Dū 都 "urbane and exquisitely beautiful" (ant. bì 鄙 "rustic and inelegant") is a highly poetic word that can only be used in elevated prose.

[ARCHAIC], [ELEVATED], [POETIC], [VISUAL]; [[RARE]]

11. Yán 妍 "attractive and exquisite (of humans as well as human products)" (ant. chì 蚩 "unattractive") refers to elaborate beauty. See SEXY.

[ARCHAIC], [ELEVATED], [HUMAN], [POETIC]; [[RARE]]

12. Xiū 脩 / 修 "refined moral beauty" refers to moral as well as physical beauty, thus coming close the Greek kalokagathia, but never approaching the latter in importance as a cultural keyword.

<div>[ELEVATED], [ARTIFICIAL]; [[RARE]]</div><div> </div><div>吳蓬，東方審美詞彙集萃，上海文藝出版社，2002 lists the following rough definitions of a variety of terms of aesthetic appreciation by the artist and scholar Wu Peng. Many of these terms express conventional appreciative flattery only. This list does provide one not particularly well-known artist's subjective readings of some basic terms of traditional Chinese aesthetic approbation.</div><div>勃：富有生机之突起。 苍：浓的，毛的，老练的。 沉：沉着不浮，有重量感。 冲：调成和淡之意向。 饬：整顿。 粗：大而不笨者。 淳：清，往往易薄，然而淳是清中滋润之厚。 醇：与淳略同，这醇是提炼后的滋润之厚。 绰：与"约"字合用，即舒而不纵之意。 澹：平静而有幽淡之趣。 淡：与浓艳相对。 宕：放荡不拘。 跌：往往与"宕"字合用，即是起伏明显之状。 端：方正而不出偏，有稳实感。 敦：很实在的，结实的厚。 繁：众而密，有生气。 方：与平正同义。 丰：饱满而充足。 风：审美中之"风"指的是一种气韵格调。 飞：大幅度的流动。 刚：属于阳性的，有正力的，与柔软相对。</div><div>高：俯视一切的、超然得不一般。 工：规矩，不潦草。 孤：自我独立。 古：旧气，更有历史的抗怀千载之迹象。 骨：内在的架子。 犷：是跟"雄悍"接近，在粗中发展开来。 瑰：不单调的美。 乖：不和顺。 憨：近于拙朴而敦实。 酣：厚润四溢。 豪：激动向上之貌，有气魄。 宏：大而有气度。 厚：有沉积的饱和。 华：明亮而艳丽。 环：长久圆融之境。 荒：与"枯简"接近，不修饰。 豁：与开朗接近，然比开朗明显。 恢：宽广有余。 浑：团然一气之象，有朦胧感。 简：经过一番整修的减少。 娇：美得可爱。 警：审美中用此警字，往往指敏锐、颖达。 </div><div>劲：能察觉的力。 精：很到位。 隽：精致而具内涵之美。 娟：秀而婉丽。 崛：高起而突出。 俊：人材杰曲之美。 峻：山高而陡。在书画中是浓而锋利之用笔。 空：有灵气之空白。 枯：干而毛，生的萎缩，然亦是力的显露。 宽：大度而畅朗。 旷：广阔而空灵。 辣：是枯毛爽直的老笔触。 朗：明亮而豁然。 琅：圆而光润。 伦：是同类之意，带有文明意念。 冷：跟"淡"与"静”接近，与浓烈相对。 炼：精到而有功力。 淋：与"漓”往往合用，是无拘束的洒落。 流：明显的动感。 迈：阔而放的超势。 莽：宽广而繁密的，朴直奔放的。 袤：与"古"字合用，即悠长久远之趣。 茂：有生气的繁密。 媚：柔美之趣。 宓：安而静。 明：清晰有亮度。 凝：浓重而不流动。 懦：毫无火气之柔软。 平：一般的，接近于稳。 朴：原始状态，形象较准。 嫖：与"姚"字合用，即动疾之状，而有气势。 奇：不一般。 气：生发的，迎面直扑而来的感觉。 清：是混的相对。其间透出一股朗气。 峭：山之直而险，在书画中是露锋的侧锋用笔，有明显露 尖状态。文章中之峭，是意气直逼。 遒：婉转有致，内力强劲。 虬：与遒类似，但动感较强，弯曲而有力度。 意：诚实谨慎。 儒：代表文人之书卷气。 洒：散落无拘束。 赡：富有与丰实。若与"疏”、"逸”组合即成"澹”或"安"之义。</div><div>骚：审美中之骚字，可引伸为风骚至风流感。 韶：美丽有光泽。 涩：在不爽快的进程中，流露出内力之美。 深：不是浮面的。 神：精与气合。高端的。 生：不成熟，但比成熟有味。 肆：任意放纵。 松：松是灵活自然，是一切技巧之本要。 瘦：与粗笨相对，在审美中的"瘦"，是指细长而精练。 疏：一种稀少秀朗之美。 肃：有立即静穆下来之势。 率：与潦草随便有别，爽快而直接。 邃：深远而悠久。 阅：通达之意。 给：与"宕"合用，是安详舒放之趣。 天:很自然，一片天箱之"天"。 恬：安静而坦然。 挺：直而有生气。 婉：柔和而曲折。 温：是一种暖调与缓和的综合。</div><div>巍：往往与"峨"合用，是高大厚实之趣。 洗：与"炼”合用，即是"精炼"之意，凡物之洁出于洗。 犀：与"利"字合用，即坚利。 熙：光明，和乐。 细：指细而不纤。 娴：文静而雅致。 闲：一种高雅的自由。 萧：疏少有致。 潇：散朗而润泽。 馨：很醇厚的香气。 篁："篁古”是悠远辽阔之意。 雄：强大，有力度，有霸气。 秀：灵巧的，有生气的，美好的显露。 虚：表象空，但并非真空。 雅：文气而不俗。 妍：鲜美而柔性。 严：认真，不马虎。 淹：一种浸沉与精深明达之境。 野：超脱、不规范。 冶：经过一番精致修饰。 逸：悠闲的起伏。</div><div>意：精神倾向。 莹：透明而幽亮。 雍：往往与“容"字合用，有和顺之貌。 幽：静而深。 腴：肥润而饱和。 郁：厚积而有生气。 纤：与"迥"字合用，即弯环回绕之趣。 遹：与"瑰"字合用，即纤迥美丽之趣。 渊：往往与"懿"合用，是深润而悠美之趣。 圆：接近于饱满润滑。 蕴：与"藉"合用，即内涵丰富。 韵：一种余味不尽之趣。 恣：放纵的，无拘束的。 滋：湿润感。 自：出于本性的流露。 质：本体的，实在的。 纵：放逸无拘之状。 拙：接近朴，形不准。 庄：端正之貌。 卓：与“荤"合用，是突出明显之状。 </div><div> </div>
ALREADY

[GENERAL/SPECIFIC]

1. Yǐ 已 (ant. wèi 未 "not yet") is the general current word for "already", and this word can precede nominal predicates ( 在位已十年矣 "for already 10 years" analysed as vadN), jì 既 cannot be so used.

[GENERAL]

2. Jì 既 (ant. wèi 未 "not yet") is limited to subordinate clauses, yǐ 已 has no such limitations of distribution in this respect. Jì 既 can only be used in front of VPs expressing a clearly concluded development which the word declares to have been completed; yǐ 已 can also mark that something has already STARTED. See also AFTERWARDS

[SPECIFIC]
RANK

1. The most general term for relative rank of any kind in any walk of life is děng 等.

2. Jiē 階, jí 級. and the rarer bān 班 are general terms referring to a person's position in the bureaucratic hierarchy.

3. Wèi 位 and the rarer liè 列 typically refer to relatively elevated official ranks only.

4. Jué 爵 refers specifically to noble rank.

5. Shàng 上 is occasionally used to refer to leading position.
POWER

1. The dominant general words for power are wēi 威 "formidable authority" and shì 勢 "strategic position of power".

2. Quán 權 refers to one's political leverage or one's formal position of power.

3. Wèi 位 refers to the formal and official (usually very high) position one has in a hierarchy, but the word is occasionally also used as a general term referring to any station in life. See RANK.

4. Zhòng 重 refers to the actual political influence a person may have.

5. Shù 數 refers to a complex constellation of power as an object of assessment.

6. Shén 神 is occasionally used to refer to a supernatural or divinely sanctioned authority or political efficacy of a person.

7. Yán 嚴 refers to the formidable quality of power growing from real authority.
HUMBLE

1. The current general word for objective low social status without any connotation concerning moral worth is bēi 卑 (ant. zūn 尊 "objectively venerable by social standards").

2. Jiàn 賤 (ant. 貴 "objectively of high standard, but also personally and subjectively judged to deserve this high status") typically adds to the notion of objectively judged low status that of subjectively appreciated moral decrepitude.

3. Xiǎo 小 and shào 少 (all ant. zhǎng 長 "senior") refers to relatively junior status in the bureaucratic hierarchy.

4. Xià 下 refers to low status in absolute terms.

5. Wēi 微 refers to a person being of low status so as to be of no substantial political or social importance. See UNIMPORTANT

NB: One's rank wèi 位 may be said to be zūn 尊 "elevated" or bēi 卑 "lowly", but one's status as such could never be jiàn 賤.
SEAT

1.. Wèi 位 focusses on the seat as an indicator of a person's status.

2. Xí 席 refers specifically to the physical object, the mat, on which one sat in ancient China.

3. Yán 筵 refers specifically to the mat placed immediately on the floor on which the xí 席 or "sitting mat" in turn was laid out.

4. Zuò 坐 / 座 is used to refer to a seat as such, in a general way, but this usage is not very common.
INSTALL

1. The general term for installing someone in a high position is lì 立.

2. Fēng 封 refers specifically to installing a person in an enfeoffed position.

3. Jiàn 建 primarily refers to the establishment not of a person but of the position itself; however, the word does occasionally refer to the establishment of a person in the position of a ruler.

NB: Jí wèi 即位 and the rarer as well as more elevated jiàn zuò 踐阼 refer to the act of ascending the throne, i.e. to "being installed".

Word relations

Object: (RANK)在 / 才/BE IN The general word is zài 在 (ant. wáng 亡"be not present, be absent") which refers to any presence of anything in anything. [GENERAL]
Object: (RANK)爭/COMPETE The clearly dominant general word for competition or struggle, both hostile and friendly, is zhēng 爭 and the focus is on the conflict rather on what is being fought for. See STRUGGLE
Contrast: (RANK)地/PLACE Dì 地 is primarily a territory, and only by occasional extension the abstract location of something.
Contrast: (RANK)處/OFFICE
Assoc: (RANK)政/GOVERN Zhèng 政 refers to the basically bureaucratic administration of a state, practical implementation of governmental measures.
Assoc: (RANK)官/OFFICE The standard and very current general word for any elevated bureaucratic office, civil or military, is guān 官 (the original meaning of which refers to the building housing the office-holders office).
Assoc: (RANK)爵/RANK Jué 爵 refers specifically to noble rank.
Oppos: (RANK)身/PERSON Shēn 身 regularly refers to the embodied person, as something to be cultivated, and as something to be morally careful about, but the word is originally widely used to refer to the physical body as such being at times hard to distinguish from the figurative use discussed in this group. The word is very often reflexive.