TLS - 漢學文典

Taxonomy of meanings for 利:　　

lì (OC: rids MC: li) 力至切去廣韻：【吉也説文銛也亦州名華陽國志昔蜀王封弟於漢中号曰苴侯因命其邑曰葭萌秦滅蜀置巴蜀二郡先主改葭萌爲漢夀屬梓潼郡晉爲晉壽南齊分置東晉壽郡於烏奴今州城是又於其郡置西益州梁改爲黎州元帝又改爲利州又舎利獸名亦姓風俗通云漢有利乾爲中山相力至切八】
PROFIT
- nm[.post-N]publicpublic benefits, public advantage; what is generally useful, profitability; usefulness (brought to somebody)
- vt(oN)objectbring profit to the contextually determinate person
- nm[.post-N]profit, income
- nsubjectassets; what is profitable, what profits; what is in one's interest, benefit; objective interest; what one can aim for as profit
- nab.post-V{NUM}featureadvantages
- nabprofitability; advantageousness
- nab[.post-N]conceptself-interest; benefit to oneself (as opposed to 仁義_; considerations of individual profit
- nabsocialbenefit, profit, advantage; conditions for profit or benefit
- vibe advantageous; be profitable, be advisable
- vifeatureto be easily enticed by profit
- viprocessturn out advantageous, provide profit
- vt(oN)causativemake profit on a contextually determinate transaction, make something contextually determinate turn out profitable
- vt+prep+Nbe of profit to, be of benefit to
- vt+V[0]derive profit from
- vtoNcausativebenefit; be profitable for; provide for the good of; work for the profit of, be of benefit to
- vtoNcausativecause to be profitable; turn to one's advantage
- vtoNmiddle voicebe profited; derive profit from, reap the profit
- vtoNpsychprofit (oneself)
- vtoNputativeregard as beneficial to one's interests; see one's advantage in; profit from; see the benefit in
- nab(post-N)the corresponding profit; the profit resulting from the contextually determinate NCH
- vttoN. V[0]consider N1 to be more profitable than VingLZ
- vtoNpassivebe regarded as beneficial to one's interests;LZ
- nab.adNprofit-orientedLZ
- nab[post-N]N=indefprofit for oneself/the subject of the sentenceCH
- nab.post-Nprofit for NLZ
- nabconceptthe word "lì = profit"DS
- nabwhat is considered beneficial: natural suitabilityCH
- vtoNto profit from NLZ
- general: wealth>
  RICH
  - nabwealth, riches, resources
  - deserved>
    REWARD
    - nreward
- profitable:
  USEFUL
  - vibe useful
  - action: deploy as useful>
    USE
    - nabactthe use of something
    - vtoNmake use of, deploy; put into practice
    - choosing among alternatives>
      PREFER
      
      vttoN1.+N2prefer as being more profitable, find N1 more beneficial than N2CH
      - psychological> INTERESTS
        
        nabsocialinterests
        
        religious> AUSPICIOUS
        
        vtoNputativefind auspicious
        
        in battle> WIN
        
        viactwin the day
        
        putative> LIKE
        
        vttoN1.+N2find N1 more profitable than N2
        
        practical> EAGER
        
        vt+V[0]eager to VERB
        
        vtoNstativebe greedy for, covet
        
        nab.post-Veagerness for V-ingDS
        
        excessive> GREEDY
        
        vtoNbe greedy after
        
        action> ENJOY
        
        vt+prep+Ndraw advantage/pleasure from
        
        vtoNdraw advantage from
  - useful/profitable>
    SHARP
    - nabstativesharpness
    - vadNsharp
    - vadNfigurativesharp and potentially harmful; potentially dangerous; incicisive and sharp (mouths)
    - vibe sharp (of anything that can cut and piece), have sharp edge;
    - vichangebecome sharp
    - vtoNcausativesharpen
    - nab[post-N]figurativeit's sharpness > its potentialDS
    - metonymy>
      SWORD
      
      NPsword ("sharp" is an empty epithet)
    - thus swift>
      QUICK
      
      vifast; agile
      
      vtoNto possess a quick NLZ
      - quick-witted> CLEVER
        
        practical> SKILLFUL
        
        nabdispositionnimbleness
        
        vadNfigurativekeen, skillful
        
        vifigurativesharp> be well-trained, swift; be nimble; be quick-witted
        
        vtoNcausativecause to be nimble/swift
        
        intellectual> INTELLIGENT
        
        vibe clever, be "sharp"
      - effortless in action> EASY
      - in speech> ELOQUENT
        
        vadNeloquent, smooth, well-spoken
    - playful: polite paraphrase>
      URINATE
      
      vtoNurinate on
- =痢 dysentery

Additional information about 利

說文解字: 【利】，銛也。〔小徐本作「鋸也。」〕从刀，和然後利，从和省。《易》曰：利者，義之和也。【力至切】【𥝤(𥝢)】，古文利。

Criteria

SHARP

1. The most general current word for sharpness both of a point and of a blade is lì 利.

2. Ruì 銳 refers to sharpness as pointedness, and typically a sign of excellence.

3. Lì 厲／礪 is causative and refers to the sharpening of a tool or a weapon.
PROFIT

1. The current general word for any kind of material or other profit or advantage is yì 益 (ant. sǔn 損 "loss").

2. Lì 利 (1. ant. yì 義 "considerations of rectitude"(!!); 2. ant. hài 害 "damage and loss suffered") refers to material profit.

3. Dé 得 (ant. shī 失 "lose") refers abstractly to what is achieved as a desired advantage.

5. Rù 入 (ant. chū 出 "expense") is manifest material gain.

6. Biàn 便 (ant. zǔ 阻 "hindrance and disadvantage") refers to a convenient adantage.
EAGER

1. The current general word for eagerness for something is jí 急 (ant. huǎn 緩 "uneager").

2. Jí 疾 tends to refer to urgent eagerness.

3. Jí 亟 refers occasionally to a concrete urgent eagerness for something desired.

4. Hān 酣, normally "tipsy", is occasionally used to refer to eagerness of pursuit of something.

5. Lì 利 sometimes refers to the abstract attitude towards something as singularly and acutely profitable to one.
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>
DAMAGE

1. By far the commonest general word for damage is hài 害 (ant. lì 利 "benefit").

2. Shāng 傷 "impair" and sǔn 損 "reduce and impair" (all ant. yì 益 "strengthen") are weaker than hài 害 and definitely suggest the survival of what is impaired.

3. Zéi 賊 is stronger than hài 害 and definitely suggests that the damage done is serious indeed - possibly fatal.
PURSUE

1. The current general word for pursuing something or going after something in a hostile way, driving what is pursued before one, competing with it for speed, is zhú 逐 and the word can only very occasionally refer to abstract pursuits like that of wisdom, as in the venatio sapientiae of Nicolas Cusanus. It is significant that the word currently means "to expel", where expelling and chasing are not always easy to distinguish.

2. Zhuī 追 refers to the attempt of catching up with anything, characteristically a kòu 寇 "enemy" or thief (who may not know he is being pursued) but without any attending notion that what is being caught up with is NECESSARILY trying to escape or to make great speed, and the word is regularly used in figurative derived meanings "to seek", as in zhuī lì 追利 "chasing after profit".

3. Suǒ 索 emphasises the seeking aspect in the pursuit of something or someone.

4. Jí 及 and the rarer dài 逮 refer to a successful pursuit. See CATCH UP

5. Qū 驅 suggests a hot and fast pursuit typically uncrowned by success.
ENJOY

1. The current general word for active enjoyment and delighting in something is lè 樂 (ant. bēi 悲 "be saddened by"), as in 與民同樂 "share one's enjoyings/enjoyments with the people".

2. Xiǎng 享 refers to enjoying material benefits or - when applied to gods and spirits - to the enjoyment of sacrifices.

3. Lì 利 refers to the use and enjoyment of what one regards as profitable.

4. NB: Hān 酣 refers to enjoying (prototypically alcohol) with gusto and enthusiasm, or in a transferred sense enjoying anything else in the way one might enjoy alcohol. The word is marginal to the group.

Word relations

Ant: (PROFIT)凶/DISASTER Xiōng 凶, shěng 眚 and jiù 咎 are archaic metaphysical terms for misfortunes.
Ant: (PROFIT)害/DAMAGE By far the commonest general word for damage is hài 害 (ant. lì 利"benefit").
Ant: (PROFIT)患/DISASTER Huàn 患 refers to any major or minor disaster, even down to minor irritations.
Ant: (PROFIT)仁義/GOOD This refers to morality in general, including virtues other than those mentioned explicitly in the binome.
Ant: (PROFIT)毀/DESTROY The current general word for destruction of any kind is huǐ 毀, and what is destroyed may anything from a toy or a house to a state.
Ant: (LIKE)畏/FEAR Wèi 畏 is typically a stable state of reasoned fear, typically relating those who are in authority (the etymologically related wēi 威 on which relation there is much word-play in texts like ZUO), or ghosts etc, but the word also has extended generalised uses, as in wèi sǐ 畏死 "be afraid to die".
Ant: (SHARP)鈍/BLUNT The current general word for bluntness of any kind is dùn 鈍.
Epithet: (SHARP)兵/WEAPON Bīng 兵 refers to warfare as a military practice rather than as a political means to achieve ends, and it is significant that the word has no obvious antonym.
Epithet: (SHARP)器/WEAPON
Epithet: (PROFIT)私/SELFISH The standard word for selfishness in classical Chinese is sī 私.
Epithet: (PROFIT)厚/ABUNDANT Hòu 厚 (ant. báo 薄 "meagerly supplied with something") primarily refers to man-made or man-caused generous abundance, prototypically in contexts such as hospitality or exchange of presents. >>ARTIFICIAL
Epithet: (PROFIT)私/PRIVATE The dominant current word for privacy is sī 私 (ant. gōng 公 "public"), and the word designates everything that falls outside the responsibility of public administration. Contrast SELFISH.
Epithet: (SHARP)劍/SWORD Jiàn 劍refers to the weapon with two edges which can be worn on a belt. Sword became common in China relatively late; although short bronze swords were widely used in northeastern China from Shang till early Chunqiu period, there are only few pieces known from the graves of the Western Zhou and Chunqiu aristocracy. In the middle and late Chunqiu period bronze swords came to be wider used particularly in the southern states of Wu, Yue, and Chu; the earliest textual evidence I have found for the word also dates from this period (MOZI and inscriptions on the swords of Wu and Yue). In Warring States times sword became usual weapon. Iron swords for the first time appeared in the late Chunqiu period and by the early Han completely replaced bronze pieces. Note that in Han times both aristocrats and officials worn swords like symbols of their status.
Contrast: (PROFIT)便/PROFIT Biàn 便 (ant. zǔ 阻 "hindrance and disadvantage") refers to a convenient adantage.
Contrast: (PROFIT)用/USE The current general word is yòng 用 (ant. fèi 廢 "give up the use of, not use")
Contrast: (PROFIT)安/PEACEFUL The dominant general word for peacefulness is ān 安 (wēi 危 "in imminent danger"), but in addition the word also often has considerable philosophical depth and commonly refers to a deep state of unruffled inner serenity in harmony with the outer world.
Contrast: (PROFIT)惠/GENEROUS Probably the most general word for generosity is huì 惠 (ant. sè 嗇 "stingy, ungenerous"), and this refers to any kind of emotional as well as material munificence by a person of superior status.
Assoc: (PROFIT)安/PEACEFUL The dominant general word for peacefulness is ān 安 (wēi 危 "in imminent danger"), but in addition the word also often has considerable philosophical depth and commonly refers to a deep state of unruffled inner serenity in harmony with the outer world.
Assoc: (PROFIT)財/PROPERTY The current very general term for moveable property and particularly things for daily use is cái 財.
Oppos: (PROFIT)威/POWER The dominant general words for power are wēi 威 "formidable authority" and shì 勢 "strategic position of power".
Oppos: (PROFIT)本/MONEY
Oppos: (PROFIT)義/JUSTICE
Oppos: (PROFIT)義/RECTITUDE The most general word is yì 義 "rectitude" which is often used to refer to what is proper and what is one's proper duty in general and also duties in particular.