Taxonomy of meanings for 弟:　　

  • dì (OC: liilʔ MC: dei) 徒禮切 上 廣韻：【兄弟爾雅曰男子先生爲兄後生爲弟徒禮切又特計切七 】
  • specifically younger> BROTHER
    • n[post-N.]+Npryounger brother
    • n[post-N]the subject's own younger brother; younger brothers
    • n[post-N]nonreferentiala younger brother in general
    • nadNyounger-brother
    • nadVas a younger brother; like a younger brother 弟畜之 "nourish like a younger brother would"
    • nadVreference=objectas the younger brother; like a younger brother SHIJI: 弟畜 HS:王莽少與峺兄弟同列友善，兄事斿而弟畜峺。
    • viactact as a younger brother should
    • n[post-N]autonymthe younger brother
    • npost-Nyounger brother of N
    • n(post-N)younger brother of the contextually determinate NCH
    • n(post-N).=Nprthe contextually determinate younger brother of N, NprCH
    • npost-N.=NprN's younger brother NprDS
    • action as younger> OBEY
        • obeying because young member of family> CHILD
          • nlittle boy
        • loyal obedience owed by> VIRTUE
          • nabactfraternal love, devotion to one's eldest brother
          • viactshow devotion to one's eldest brother; more generally: show proper humility towards seniors in general
          • nadNdevoted to one's eldest brother.
          • v[adN]those devoted to fraternal love
          • vt+prep+Nshow brotherly love to
          • nabpsychfraternal love and respect (especially for the eldest brother)CH
          • virtuous, docile> STUDENT
            • n[post-N][my] student(s)
      • abstract> SIBLING
        • nby catachresis?> sibling
      • grammaticalised> EGO
        • n[post-npro1.][post=npro2]I, younger brother (Tang)
    • dì (OC: liils MC: dei) 特計切 去 廣韻：【見上注又音上聲 】
    • dìSISTER
      • npost-N.=Nprhis/her younger sister NprDS

    Additional information about 弟

    說文解字: 【弟】，韋束之次弟也。从古字之象。凡弟之屬皆从弟。 【特計切】 【】、古文弟，从古文韋省，聲。

      Criteria
    • BROTHER

      1. The standard collective term for brothers is xiōng dì 兄弟.

      2. Xiōng 兄 can refer to the eldest brother as the head of his own generation (explicitly bó xiōng 伯兄 ), but it word often refers more generally to elder brothers, including those who are not the heir in the clan.

      3. Dì 弟 refers to the younger brothers, and never specifically to the youngest.

      4. Zōng zǐ 宗子 is a specific, formal, and ritual term for the eldest brother and heir in a family, typically after the death of whom he succeeds. See HEIR.

      5. Zhòng 仲 refers to the next-eldest or second-eldest brother.

      6. Bó 伯／霸 is the technical term for the eldest brother, and this word is sometimes expanded to bó xiōng 伯兄.

      7. Jì 季 refers to the last-born brother or sister.

      8. Kūn dì 昆弟 refers to brothers in general, but there is a pervasive doubt whether it does not also include the notion of cousins. See COUSIN.

    • SIBLING

      1. Kūn dì 昆弟 is occasionally used for siblings.

      2. Dì 弟 is used to refer to younger siblings, but only in the form nǚ dì 女弟 "younger sister".

    • STUDENT

      1. The current general word for a disciple of any kind, or a follower of a school or any line of thought, is tú 徒.

      2. Mén rén 門人 stresses the physical abode near a master.

      3. Dì zǐ 弟子 refers rather intimately to disciples of a master as the object of his affection.

      4. Shǔ 屬 is a cold general word referring to someone who belongs to a certain group and under a certain leadership.

      5. Cóng zhě 從者 like the English "followers" primarily focusses on the idea of following a master wherever he goes, but this nuance is weakened with time so that the term comes to mean quite abstractly "follower".

      6. Xiǎo zǐ 小子 is an affectionate term only used in the vocative.

    • VIRTUE

      1. The current general term for salient features and principles of charismatic moral potency, integrity and generosity is dé 德, when used as a term of ethical evalutation.

      2. Other general terms for subjectively construed general moral commendation include měi 美 "point of moral distinction" (ant. è 惡 "point of moral decrepitude"), and occasionally gāo 高 "elevated points, elevated spirit" (ant. jiàn 賤 "point of vulgar decrepitude"). NB that shàn 善 "excellent" is not used as a general term of positive moral appreciation in pre-Buddhist texts.

      3. The most current dé 德 "virtues" recognised in pre-Buddhist China are rén 仁 "kind-heartedness", yì 義 "rectitude", lǐ 禮 "propriety", zhì 智 "wisdom", and xìn 信 "good faith".

      4. Further important virtues are xiào 孝 "filial piety", zhōng 忠 "loyal diligence", tì 悌 / 弟 "brotherly affection", lián 廉 "impeccable probity", jié 節 "moderation", and perhaps yǒng 勇 "the courage of one's moral convictions". ( 說苑 : 百行 (xìng) 孝為先 )

      5. Zhōng yōng 中庸 "the mean in action" may be mentioned as a a central Confucian virtue, jiān ài 兼愛 "unIversal love" as a Mohist virtue, wú wéi 無為 "unobtrusive action" as a non-moralistic Taoist virtue.

      Word relations
    • Assoc: (BROTHER)兄/BROTHER Xiōng 兄 regularly refers to the eldest brother as the head of his own generation (explicitly bó xiōng 伯兄), but the word often refers more generally to elder brothers, including those who are not the heir in the clan.
    • Assoc: (VIRTUE)孝/VIRTUE Further important virtues are xiào 孝"filial piety", zhōng 忠 "loyal diligence", tì 悌/弟 "brotherly affection", lián 廉 "impeccable probity", jié 節 "moderation", and perhaps yǒng 勇 "the courage of one's moral convictions".