Taxonomy of meanings for 慢:　　

Additional information about 慢

說文解字: 【慢】，惰也。从心、曼聲。一曰：慢，不畏也。 〔小徐本無「也」。〕 【謀晏切】

Criteria
• CULTIVATE
  

  1. The current general term for cultivating something or refining it is xiū 修 (from Han times onwards sometimes also miswritten as xiū 脩, ant.* màn 慢 "neglect the cultivation of").

  2. Yǎng 養 refers specifically to the systematic cultivation of higher psychosomatic competence.

  3. Lǐ 理 refers, occasionally, to a rather abstract way of cultivating a certain skill or technique.

• DECENT
  

  1. The current word in general use is jié 節 (ant. yín 淫 "unrestrained") which refers primarily to decency in behaviour.

  2. Liáng 良 (ant.* bào 暴 "recklessness") is decency of attitude as well as decency in action.

  3. Jiǎn 儉 (ant. chǐ 侈 "excessiveness") is the important virtue of decent restraint in Confucian moral spirituality and it is something cultivated by a moral effort.

  4. Shú 淑 refers in a poetic way to the proper unassuming modesty of a person, especially of attractive women in ancient Chinese society.

  5. Ràng 讓 (ant. màn 慢 "be impolite to") is marginal in this group and refers to polite deference in interaction with others. See YIELD

• DESPISE
  

  1. The most widely used general word for contempt is qīng 輕 (ant. zhòng 重 "rate as important"), and the word typically describes an attitude based on a critical judgment. See also UNIMPORTANT

  2. Yì 易 (ant. zhòng 重 "treat as important") focusses on the subjective failure to take someone or something seriously and does not necessarily involve a critical judgment.

  3. Bēi 卑 (ant. zūn 尊 "venerate as distinguished") refers to regarding a person as characterised by his or her low social standing.

  4. Jiàn 賤 (guì 貴 "hold in high esteem" and jìng 敬 "respect") are to regard someone as vulgar, and typically as of slight moral worth.

  5. Hòu 後 (ant. xiān 先 "put first") is to fail to show proper respect for someone.

  6. Xiǎo 小 and shǎo 少 (ant. duō 多 "rate highly") expresses a negative judgment on the significance of a person or thing.

  7. Ào 傲 adds the nuance of arrogance to the notion of contempt.

  8. Miè 蔑 "to regard someone with no respect" describes a purely psychological attitude.

  9.Mà4n 慢 refers to a demonstrative failure to show proper respect for someone.

  10. Dú 瀆 refers to a disrespectful attitude or disregard for someone or something.

• NEGLECT
  

  1. The general word for neglecting something, either by deliberately ignoring it or by a failure to take due care, is hū 忽 (ant. jǐn 謹 "pay careful attention to").

  2. LŸè 略 is a deliberate act of neglecting something one has a duty to pay attention to.

  3. Màn 慢 (ant. jìng 敬 "pay proper and respectful attention to") and jiǎn 簡 (ant. xì 細 "pay detailed attention to") refer to a typically deliberate and defiant, often a deliberately outrageous, failure to pay proper attention to what is expected to be heeded.

  4. Shū 疏 (ant. yán 嚴 "pay strict attention to") refers to inadvertent nonchalant neglectfulness.

  NB: Yí 遺 "leave out" and shì 釋 "leave aside for the time being" refer to a deliberate but possibly defensible failure to take note of something, and these words are thus naturally treated in this meaning under the heading DISREGARD.

• RESPECT
  

  1. The current general word for typically public respectful attitudes and actions is jìng 敬 (ant. màn 慢 "fail to show proper respect for").

  2. Gōng 恭 (ant. jù 倨 "behave in an informal impolite way") refers specifically to private proper polite and respectful attitudes shown to a deserving person.

  3. Zūn 尊 (ant. bǐ 鄙 "consider as not worthy of any veneration or respect") refers to psychological public or private respect for someone in a very exalted social, cultural, religious and/or political position, and the degree of public respect is much greater that that in jìng 敬 and reaches into the past to ancestors.

  4. Chóng 崇 and zōng 宗 refers to distant and typically religious veneration of a spirit or person very highly regarded. SHI 靡神不宗 "there are no spirits which we have not honoured"

  5. Lǐ 禮 (ant. màn 慢 "treat without proper ritual respect") refers to a proper show of public demonstrative respect for someone on the part of a host or a superior.

  6. Wèi 畏 (ant. xiá 狎 "treat without the proper respect due to someone in high position, treat with improper familiarity") refers to awe-struck respect for a person in authority.

  7. Lóng 隆 typically refers to due diligent respect for abstract values.

  8. Qīn 欽 is an archaic courtly word referring to formal conformity with the rules of polite respect for superiors on public occasions.

  9. Zhī 知 focusses on proper appreciation of a person, accompanied by recognition of that person's worth.

• HOSPITALITY
  

  1. The notion of hospitality towards strangers in need and to travellers passing through which is so important in ancient Greece is not as prominent in China as it was in Greece. The closest one can come is hòu 厚 "meet with polite respect and generous hospitality" (ant. báo 薄 "fail to treat with generous hospitality and proper respect").

  2. Lǐ 禮 "show polite respect to" (ant. màn 慢 "treat without proper respect") refers to ritualised respect which is the Chinese Way of hospitality and does connote conviviality. See also RESPECT.

• DILIGENT
  

  1. The current word for (typically respectful) meticulous and almost fastidious diligence is jǐn 謹 (ant. màn 慢 "be neglectful").

  2. Shèn 慎 (ant. hū 忽 "be neglectful") "be careful and cautious" emphasises not only careful attention but also wariness of possible danger.

  3. Lì 力 emphasises total devotion of all one's physical and mental effort, and in this meaning the word is normally adverbial.

  4. Qín 勤 (ant. duò 惰 "without proper strenuous and dutiful effort") emphasises dutiful mental effort.

  5. Quàn 勸 focusses on the externally induced enthusiasm with which something is done.

  6. Miǎn 勉 focusses on externally or internally generated extraordinary enthusiasm for a task.

  7. Què 愨 emphasises the moral appropriateness of the diligence in question.

  8. Yuàn 愿 (not to be confused with yuàn 願 "hope") is an elevated rare word referring to respectful diligence of the people.

  9. Jìng 敬 often refers to respectful diligence in action imposed by one's respect rather than to the attitude or the explicit direct show of respect as such.

• EARNEST
  

  1. The current standard word for earnestness in attitude and earnest effort in practice is chéng 誠 (ant.* màn 慢 "negligent").

  2. Dǔ 篤 refers to trusty earnestness under the special aspect of dependability.

  3. Liàng 諒 refers to sincerity of attitude as a moral virtue.

  4. Zhōng 衷 refers to earnestness as an inner attitude under the aspect of emotional genuineness, a moral earnestness which will move Heaven.

• ARROGANT
  

  [ABSOLUTE/GRADED]

  [BEHAVIOUR/DISPOSITION]

  [HABITUAL/OCCASIONAL]

  [IMPERSONAL/PERSONAL]

  1. The most current general word for arrogance of attitude and in behaviour is probably jiāo 驕 (ant.* bēi 卑 "humble in attitude") which refers to an overbearing exaggerated self-confidence and does not essentially involve a negative attitude towards others.

  [DISPOSITION], [GENERAL], [IMPERSONAL]

  2. Ào 傲 (ant. qiān 謙 "unassuming") is primarily an arrogant attitude towards others and a failure to recognise the dignity of others in action. (NB: Only in post-Buddhist times does the word come to designate justified pride.)

  [DISPOSITION], [GRADED], [IMPERSONAL]

  3. Jù 倨 (ant. gōng 恭 "show proper politeness") is primarily an informal physical pose and then by extension nonchalance and a failure to show proper respect for others.

  [BEHAVIOUR], [HABITUAL], [HIGH-DEGREE], [IMPERSONAL]

  4. Màn 慢 (ant. jìng 敬 "show proper respect") refers to arrogance in action as a failure to show proper diligence in polite behaviour towards someone.

  [BEHAVIOUR], [HABITUAL!], [PERSONAL]

  5. Jiàn 僭 may perhaps be construed as arrogance as a result of a failure to recognise boundaries and limits to what is permissible for one, and where another person's responsibilities begin. But the word is marginal in the group. See ARROGATE.

  [BEHAVIOUR], [OCCASIONAL], [PERSONAL]

• SLOW
  

  1. The most generally used word for slowness is probably xú 徐 (ant. jí 疾 "fast"), which refers to an indifference on the part of the agent concerning the speed he is making, and the word has no negative connotations, indeed the reference is often to pleasant sauntering slow insouciance.

  2. Huǎn 緩 "slowly, at one's own speed" (ant. jí 急 "fast and urgent") tends to suggest a self-indulgent absence of haste which may call for criticism.

  3. Chí 遲 (ant. sù 速 "quickly and smoothly") focusses on a reprehensible, often inept, but possibly unavoidable, failure to make proper speed or to arrive in time.

  4. Màn 慢 (ant. qǐn 勤 "with polite expediency") is deliberate and deliberately offensive dilatory behaviour; and the word is somewhat marginal in this group.

Word relations
• Ant: (IMPOLITE)敬/RESPECT The current general word for respectful attitudes and actions is jìng 敬 (ant. màn 慢 "fail to show proper respect for"). 1 Attribution
• Assoc: (ARROGANT)傲 / 傲敖/ARROGANT Ào 傲 (ant. qiān 謙 "unassuming") is primarily an arrogant attitude towards others and a failure to recognise the dignity of others in action. (NB: Only in post-Buddhist times does the word come to designate justified pride.) [DISPOSITION], [GRADED], [IMPERSONAL]
• Synon: (ARROGANT)驕/ARROGANT The most current general word for arrogance of attitude and in behaviour is probably jiāo 驕 (ant.* bēi 卑 "humble in attitude") which refers to an overbearing exaggerated self-confidence and does not essentially involve a negative attitude towards others. [DISPOSITION], [GENERAL], [IMPERSONAL]