Taxonomy of meanings for 曾:　　

  • céng (OC: dzɯɯŋ MC: dzəŋ) 昨棱切 平 廣韻：【經也又作滕切 】
    • PAST
      • padSin the past, repeatedly
      • padSrhetorical questionever?
      • padVin the past; used to
    • zēng DISTANT
      • padNtimeremoved by one generation, great-(grandson)
      • grammaticalied> HOW
        • padVrhetorical questionhow could?
    • STATES
      • =層
      • zēng (OC: tsɯɯŋ MC: tsəŋ) 作滕切 平 廣韻：【則也亦姓曾參之後漢有尚書曾偉古作曾又音層 】
      • =增> INCREASE
        • vtoNadd to, reinforce
        • nabprocessaddition, increasing
        • vt+V[0]increase the V-ing of things
        • vtoNmathematical termCHEMLA 2003:
        • viprocessincrease
        • vtoNfigurativeincrease abstractly the practice of; increase the status of
        • zēng EVEN
          • padVeven; curiously enough even (typically with negatives)LZ
      • personal name> CONFUCIANS
        • NPprUnger no. 791

        Additional information about 曾

        說文解字: 【曾】，詞之舒也。 〔小徐本「詞」作「辭」。〕 从八、从曰，𡆧聲。 【昨稜切】

          Criteria
        • PAST

          1. The most general current word for "formerly" referring to any time in the distant or recent past is probably xī 昔 (ant. jīn 今 "present").

          2. Wǎng 往 (ant. lái 來 "future") is a general technical term for the past.

          3. Céng 曾 marks an event as belonging to the past, and the word is highly grammaticalised. 待考

          4. Cháng 嘗 places an action or experience in the past, typically in so far as this past is experienced or witnessed by someone, remarkably often by the speaker himself.

          5. Gǔ 古 and gǔ zhě 古者 refer specifically to ancient times and not just generally to the past.

          6. Xiàng 鄉 / 曏 / 嚮 refers to the relatively recent past.

          7. Nǎng 曩 refers to the somewhat more distant past.

          8. Qǐng 頃 refer to the period a short time ago.

          9. Gù 故 tends to be used adjectivally to characterise something as being former rather than present, and the meaning is very neatly distinct from gǔ 古 which would characterise something as being old.\

          NB: Zuó 昨 refers specifically to something happening a day ago. See YESTERDAY.

          Word relations