Taxonomy of meanings for 欲:　　

  • yù (OC: k-loɡ MC: jiok) 余蜀切 入 廣韻：【貪欲也余蜀切九 】
    • DESIRE
      • vt+V[0]gradedbe inclined to; would like to; wish, desire, aim for; have a clear preference for, prefer; have a genuine desire for; be preoccupied by;
      • nabpsychdesires; preferences; impulse
      • nobjectwhat one desires, aims
      • vtoNPab{S}gradeddesire that S
      • vt[+V[0]]have and show desires to do things
      • vt+V[0]desire to, aim to; would like to
      • vt[oN]be full of (improper) desires
      • vt+V[0]irrealisexpressing a counterfactual wish: I wish that, Latin utinam
      • nab.post-V{NUM}psychkind of desire 六欲2
      • vtoNgradeddesire (objects) 甚欲; want to have; hanker after
      • vtoSdesire that S
      • vt.+HE2+SUO3+Vthybrid construction: (what do you) wish to V
      • vtoSS=questiondesire
      • vadNcharacterised by desires, full of desires
      • nabpsychDesire!
      • vtoNN=humdesire the adherence of; desire the friendship of; desire collaboration with
      • nab(post-N)one's desiresCH
      • vtoNsubject=inanimate(of plants and trees) desireCH
      • npost-NN's desiresDS
      • vtoNpassivebe desiredLZ
      • vtoNintensitivedesire ultimately, really wantCH
      • nabmaterialmaterial desires; material requirements 利欲CH
      • excessive desire> LUST
        • nabpsychlust; inappropriate desires; cravings
        • persistent intense desire> PASSION
          • nabpsychbuddhist: sensual passions
        • mitigated temporary> HOPE
          • vt+V[0]fervently hope to; would dearly like to (what you are not sure to be able to achieve)
          • vtoV[0]unrealistichave（vain) hopes toCH
          • vtoNPab{S}hope that SCH
          • vtoShope for S to become trueCH
          • vtoNhope fervently forCH
      • obligatory> SHOULD
        • vt+V[0]generalshould (in one's own interest) 不欲 "should not"
        • only pragmatically obligatory desire> NEED
          • vt+V[0]need to V; colloquial English "wants to V"
          • vt[0]oNone needs N [attribute more of the examples!]CH
    • weak desire> INTEND
      • nabpsychintention
      • vt+V[0]insist on V-ing
      • vt+V(0)aim to and desire to; intendCH
      • vtoV[0]figurative"wish to" be V-ed, like to be V-edCH
      • uncertain of success> TRY
        • vtoV[0](not just quietly wish but physically) try to VCH
      • bleached of emotional component> FUTURE
        • vt+V[0]subject=humanmarker of the future: be about to, will; tend to
        • vt+V[0]subject=inanimatemarker of the future: be about to, will; tend to
        • near future> IMMEDIATELY
          • vt+V[0]be immediately about to
          • present> NOW
            • vadVjust now; just
        • likely future> PROBABLE
          • vt+V[0]will in all likelihood in the future
          • vt+V[0]continuoustend to, have a natural inclination to; be inclined to; sometimes like: would have liked to, would have tended to
          • in the conceivable event that> IF

      Additional information about 欲

      說文解字: 【欲】，貪欲也。 〔小徐本無「也」。〕 从欠、谷聲。 【余蜀切】

        Criteria
      • HOPE

        1. The general word for a hope (rather than a wish) yuàn 願 (ant. kǒng 恐 "be very much afraid that"), but the word is rather formal and often tends to express a hope regarding what someone else (typically of higher status) might do. 2. Yù 欲 (ant. kǒng 恐？ “be terrified by the thought of", is very commonly used as a general word for an emotionally intense hope that is currently entertained. (The cases where the word clearly invites translation as "hope" and cannot be rendered as "desire" or "wish" are in the hundreds.) 3. Jì 冀 (ant. jù 懼 "fear") typically refers to an unrealistic or distant precarious hope concerning one's own future or other person's future actions. 4. Wàng 望 "look forward to" refers to a hope regarding realistic external events, and not necessary actions by any person, and the word tends to refer to a more realistic concrete hope and expectation than the equally current yuàn 願.

        5. Qī 期 is a definitive realistic hope, often related to one's own future actions.

        6. Xìng 幸 "hope to be so lucky to find that" (ant. wèi 畏 "fear") is part of polite court speech and refers to a high hope presented as not strongly realistic.

        NB: Pàn 盼 is post-Han.

      • CHINA

        睡虎地秦墓竹簡 1978: 226 臣邦人不安秦主而欲去夏者, 勿許. 何謂夏 ? 欲去親屬是謂夏.

        The words for China have this in common that they do NOT designate any one state. 中國 "the central states" is implicitly plural when it does not refer to the capital city. 諸夏 the various Xià (states)" is explicitly plural. The standard Imperium Romanum has no counterpart in Chinese until very late, unless one admits 天下 "all under Heaven" as a designation for the empire. But 天下 does not define any bounded empire. It remains to be seen exactly when a standard term for China was took shape. Compare the problems of finding a term for the Chinese language.

        Based on 顧頡剛 & 王樹民, “ 夏 ” 和 “ 中國 ”— 祖國古代的稱號, Zhongguo lishi dili luncong, Vol. 1 (Xi'an, 1981), 6-22).

        In the Shu and Shi sections relating to the early Zhou, 區夏 (= 夏區 ), 有夏 and 時夏 (= 是夏 ) refers to the place in which the Zhou established their capital after their conquest of Shang, in contradistinction to Zhou 掇 homeland in the West ( 西土 ) and the close Zhou allies ( 一二邦 ). The Zhou referred to their own domain as 烠 he central city-state � ( 中國 ). Since 中國 in this usage refers to the territory directly governed by the Zhou, it is singular and used in exchange with 京師 and in contradistinction with 四方 and 四國. Other states also referred to their capital regions as 啎什縕 (thus Wu in GY 19.09.01/618); a (perhaps late) variant of this word is 啎尹塹 (Yugong).

        After becoming strong, the states enfeoffed by Zhou asserted the community with the 周 by commencing to refer to themselves as 堔 L �, leading to the plural designation 埣悎 L �, used in contrast with designations like 啈 i 狄�. The distinction between the two groups was viewed as cultural, and its precise reference shifted over time, originally excluding states (like 楚 ) from the community of 諸夏 but later including them, or including them in the beginning, whilst later excluding them (like 秦 ). Some of the non- 諸夏 states were viewed as subservient to 諸夏 states, others as their enemies. The membership of 楚 to the 諸夏 circle was always insecure; it was, so to speak, was"always on probation.

        The 東夏 made up a subdivision of the 諸夏, including states such a 齊 and 魯.

        In parallel with the 堔 L � appellations arose the 埽寊 appellations, 埽寊 on its own and 埣捄寊, and, the two words may well be cognate, the common 埽堮 L �.

        In the Warring States period the cultural distinction gave way to a geographical distinction, and the 中國 states were now the state occupying the Central Plain

      • INTEND

        1. The dominant general word in this group is yù 欲 (ant. fú 弗 "refuse to") which refers to any intention of any kind, and the subjects are normally animate.

        2. Qiě 且 "be about to" refers to the immediate future and does not stress intention, although the subject is normally human.

        3. Jiāng 將 refers to any impending event with animate or inanimate subjects.

        4. Yì 意 stresses the subjective aspect of planning and desiring to do something, involved in an intention to do something.

        5. Tú 圖 "make plans for" is a rather elevated word to use for intentions to engage in major undertakings.

        6. Xīn 心 refers to basic intentions or basic strategy.

      • FUTURE

        1. The current general word for the immediate future is jiāng 將 (ant. yǐ 已 "already") which refers freely to any part of the future, distant or imminent.

        2. Qiě 且 (ant. jì 既 "already") refers to immiment and immediate future. See SOON.

        3. Yù 欲 comes to be used as a neutral indicator of the likely future so that we are not likely to find bì yù 必欲 ever coming to mean "will surely, will necessarily".

        4. Yǐ 以 "in order to" is restricted to subordinate clauses and refers specifically to the intended future.

        5. The most current and general word for the nominalised notion of the future is probably lái 來 (ant. wǎng 往 "the past").

        6. Hòu 後 (ant. qíán 前 "earlier times") often refers to what comes afterwards, the future.

        7. Wèi 未 "not yet" is sometimes -very rarely- used as a noun to refer to the future. NB: yǐ 已 is never used as an antonym.

      • DESIRE

        1. The dominant standard word is yù 欲 (ant. fú 弗 "refused to, would not") which refers to any concrete - and typically temporary - intention or desire of any kind, irrespective how strongly motivated it is. 欲戰 "wants to fight".

        2. Hào 好 (ant.* yàn 厭 "be fed up with VPing") refers to a general strong, and strongly motivated, inclination in favour of something. 好戰 "is fond of warfare".

        3. Tān 貪 refers to an exaggerated and inapropriate degree of craving something.

        4. Shì 嗜 (ant. wù 惡 "dislike") refers to a stable and deeply ingrained constant desire for something, often a reprehensible craving.

        5. Gān 甘 derives its special force from the culinary meaning "have a taste for" and refers to any predilection, typically for material things.

        6. Shì yù 嗜慾 / 嗜欲 is the abstract technical term for appetitive urges which need to be moderated and kept under control.

      • REFUSE

        1. The current general word for refusal to do what one is asked to do or invited to do is què 卻 (ant. yǔn 允 "agree gracefully", but only for the case when què 卻 has a subject of high status), verbalised refusal to do what one is invited to do is currently cí 辭 (ant. cóng 從 "follow, do as one is told").

        2. Jù 拒 (ant. chéng 承 "accept (a task)") refers to emphatic refusal, a decision to have nothing to do with something.

        3. Shì 釋 (ant. shòu 受 "accept (a task)") refers to an insistance not to do what one might be expected to undertake.

        4. Fú 弗 (ant. yù 欲 "be willing to") regularly refers to what the agent "will not do" or "refuses to do", as an emphatic negation.

        5. Chì 斥 (ant. fèng 奉 "accept (a task)") is occasionally used to refer to a refusal to accede to a request or demand.

        Word relations
      • Inconsist: (PASSION)情/BASIC NATURE Qíng 情 (ant. wěi 偽 "artificical acquired character") refers to the basic nature of a thing as forming a pattern of reaction to other things.
      • Result: (DESIRE)得/OBTAIN The current general and highly abstract verb for obtaining any form of possession of anything abstract or concrete is dé 得 (ant. shī 失 "lose inadvertently").
      • Ant: (DESIRE)惡/HATE The dominant general word referring to intense dislike is wù 惡 (ant. ài 愛 "love") which can relate to all kinds of concrete or abstract objects.
      • Object: (DESIRE)從/CONFORM Cóng 從 and suí 隨 refer to conformity construed as a matter of following a lead.
      • Epithet: (DESIRE)六/SIX
      • Contrast: (DESIRE)願/HOPE The general word for a hope or wish is yuàn 願 (ant. kǒng 恐 "be very much afraid that"), but the word tends to express a hope regarding what someone else might do.
      • Assoc: (DESIRE)嗜 / 耆/DESIRE Shì 嗜 (ant. wù 惡 "dislike") refers to a stable and deeply ingrained constant desire for something.
      • Synon: (FUTURE)當/FUTURE
      • Oppos: (DESIRE)理/PRINCIPLE Lǐ 理 refers to inherent structuring patterns of things.