Taxonomy of meanings for 潔:　　

  • 潔 jié (OC: keed MC: ket) 古屑切 入 廣韻：【淸也經典用絜 】
    • GOOD
      • nabactmoral purity
      • vadNimmaculate and morally pure
      • vimorally impeccable, unimpeachable
      • vt+prep+Nrelationalbe immaculate and morally pure with respect to
      • nab(post-N)the contextually determinate N's moral purityCH
    • PURE
      • vibe unsullied, without blemish; clean
      • vifigurativemorally pure
      • vtoNcausativepurify
      • vtoNcausativepurify (oneself)
      • vtoNcausativepurify (oneself)
      • vadNpure
    • BRIGHT
      • CLEAR
        • MONK
          • SURNAMES

            Additional information about 潔

            說文解字: 　　 【潔】，也。从水、絜聲。 【古㞕切】

              Criteria
            • PURE

              1. The standard general term for purity is chún 純 (ant. zá 雜 "mixed").

              2. Sù 素 (ant. huá 華 "well-adorned") adds to the notion of purity that of the unadulaterated original state of something.

              3. Qīng 清 (ant. zhuó 濁 "dirty, impure") and the rarer chéng 澂 emphasises the absence of any admixtures that might make something less transparent and translucent.

              4. Jìng 淨 (ant. wū 污 "impure") emphasises the unsullied state of something and the absence specifically of dirt.

              5. Chè 澈 (ant. hún 渾 "murky") focusses on perfect transparency.

              6. Jié 潔 / 絜 (ant. wū 污 "impure" and zhuó 濁 "dirty") refer abstractly to the absence of any material or immaterial impurity or blemish.

              7. Chún 醇 (bó 駁 "mixed") refers specifically to the undiluted state of wine but the word is also used in generalised senses of purity.

            • WICKED

              1. The most current and general word for wickedness is probably è 惡 (ant. shàn 善 "good"), but it must be noted that in early texts the word is more current in the meaning of physical ugliness.

              2. Xié 邪 (ant. zhèng 正 "straight and in no way wicked") typically involves nuances of sinister evil influences in addition to plain human depravity.

              3. Suì 祟 (ant. xiáng 祥 "of the good innocuous kind") refers to sinister supernatural wicked forces operating in the human world.

              4. Yāo 妖 (ant. jí 吉 "of a generally auspicious nature") typically implies nuances of seductive or beguiling qualities coexisting with wickedness.

              5. Jiān 姦 (ant. liáng 良 "of the good sort, decent") refers to sheer human depravity with no supernatural or sinister overtones.

              6. Chǒu 醜 (ant. měi 美 "of commendable moral quality") often refers to something rather like moral ugliness and depravity in early texts, but from Han times onwards the word comes to refer to physical ugliness].

              7. Qū 曲 (ant. duān 端 "straight and unwarped") refers to warped crookedness and lack of moral straightness.

              8. Wú 污 (ant. jié 潔 "morally pure and spotless") refers to moral defilement or moral impurity.

              9. Liè 劣 (ant. ) refers to moral inferiority as opposed to excellence.

              10. Pì 僻 (ant. ) refers to

              11. Jiāo 姣 refers to wickedness coupled with cunning, scheming and malice.

              12. Xiǎn 險 is occasionally used to refer to the type of wickedness that is a danger to the group or the state.

              13. Wāi 歪 (ant. zhí 直 "morally straight") refers to wickedness under the image of moral warpedness and and deviation from a straight proper norm.

              14. Xiōng 凶 refers to a baneful wickedness that bodes ill for the future.

              15. Chǐ 恥 refers to something that is a public disgrace. See SHAME.

            • DIRTY

              1. The current general word for uncleanness and dirt, both concrete and abstract, is wū 污 / 汙 (ant. jié 潔 "clean").

              2. Zhuó 濁 (ant qīng 清 "clear and pure") typically refers to physical states of dirtiness, but there are occasional usages like zhuó lì 濁吏 "morally impure official".

              3. Huì 穢 can refer to physical dirt, but the word is also used abstractly to refer to what is vulgar and morally distasteful.

              4. Hún 混 refers to an admixture of dirt rather than to the presence of dirt on some surface.

              5. Gòu 垢 refers to the presence of physical dirt on some surface.

            • CLEAN

              1. The most general word for cleanness, both physical and moral, is jié 潔／絜.

              2. Qīng 清 focusses on translucence in its literal meaning.

              Word relations
            • Ant: (PURE)污/DIRTY The current general word for uncleanness and dirt, both concrete and abstract, is wū 污/汙 (ant. jié 潔 "clean").
            • Ant: (GOOD)濁/DIRTY Zhuó 濁 (ant. qīng 清 "clear and pure") typically refers to physical states of dirtiness, but there are occasional usages like zhuó lì 濁吏 "morally impure official".
            • Ant: (GOOD)辱/DISGRACE Rǔ 辱 refers to public humiliation and public disgrace typically caused by overt actions or reactions of others.
            • Assoc: (PURE)白/WHITE The dominant word for whiteness is bái 白 (ant. hēi 黑 "black").
            • Assoc: (GOOD)清/GOOD Qīng 清 (ant. zhuó 濁 "defiled and corrupt") can be used to refer to moral purity.
            • Assoc: (PURE)清/PURE Qīng 清 (ant. zhuó 濁 "dirty, impure") and the rarer chéng 澂 emphasises the absence of any admixtures that might make something less transparent and translucent.
            • Assoc: (GOOD)廉/GOOD Lián 廉 (ant. tān 貪 "greedy for bribery gifts") refers to moral probity and impeccability.
            • Assoc: (GOOD)愨/DILIGENT Què 愨 emphasises the moral appropriateness of the diligence in question.
            • Assoc: (GOOD)賢/EXCELLENT
            • Synon: (GOOD)高/SUPERIOR