Taxonomy of meanings for 益:　　

Additional information about 益

說文解字: 【益】，饒也。从水、皿，皿益之意也。 【伊昔切】

Criteria
• CONTRARY
  

  1. The current word for being logically or practically opposed to something else is fǎn 反 (ant. tóng 同 "agree with, go along with").

  2. Guāi 乖 refers to any kind of practical contradiction or opposition, also opposition to what is current and acceptable. See WICKED

  2. Bèi 悖 (ant. xié 諧 "be in harmony with, be perfectly consistent with") refers quite abstractly to logical incoherence or inconsistency.

  3.Hài 害 (ant. yì 益 "further strengthen the point") is a term for logical inconsistency.

  4. Xiāng gōng 相攻 and bù xiāng róng 不相容 are technical terms referring to logical incompatibility.

  NB: Shuǐ huǒ 水火 is late post-Buddhist and refers vividly to a practical incompatibility.

• REDUCE
  

  1. The current general word for diminishing or lessening anything in any way is sǔn 損 (ant. yì 益 "increase, improve")..

  2. Kuī 虧 (ant. yíng 盈 "cause to become more plentiful") refers to impairing a typically abstract or at least subtle thing.

  3. Jiǎn 減 (ant. zēng 增 "increase") typically refers to a reduction in the intensitity or in the number of something.

  4. Shǎo 少 is used to refer to the reducing the number of things. See FEW

• PROGRESS
  

  1. The current general word denoting progress of any kind is yì 益.

  2. Jìn 進 is very occasionally used to denote progress.

• PROFIT
  

  1. The current general word for any kind of material or other profit or advantage is yì 益 (ant. sǔn 損 "loss").

  2. Lì 利 (1. ant. yì 義 "considerations of rectitude"(!!); 2. ant. hài 害 "damage and loss suffered") refers to material profit.

  3. Dé 得 (ant. shī 失 "lose") refers abstractly to what is achieved as a desired advantage.

  5. Rù 入 (ant. chū 出 "expense") is manifest material gain.

  6. Biàn 便 (ant. zǔ 阻 "hindrance and disadvantage") refers to a convenient adantage.

• INCREASE
  

  1. The most current and most general word for increase, both abstract and concrete is yì 益 (ant. sǔn 損 "decrease"). See MORE which overlaps considerably with this group.

  2. Zī 滋 is an archaic but not uncommon word referring to an overall natural increase or growth in quantity of something, but the most current use of the word is adverbial in the sense "increasing naturally".

  3. Zé1ng 增 (ant. shǎo 少 "beocme less") typically refers to concrete or material increase of something.

  4. Jiā 加 (ant. jiǎn 減 "decrease by taking away") typically focusses on the action of adding something which brings about the increase.

• DAMAGE
  

  1. By far the commonest general word for damage is hài 害 (ant. lì 利 "benefit").

  2. Shāng 傷 "impair" and sǔn 損 "reduce and impair" (all ant. yì 益 "strengthen") are weaker than hài 害 and definitely suggest the survival of what is impaired.

  3. Zéi 賊 is stronger than hài 害 and definitely suggests that the damage done is serious indeed - possibly fatal.

• MORE
  

  1. The most current and general word expressing the idea of something becoming more rather than less is yì 益 (ant. sǔn 損 "less and less").

  2. Mí 彌 focusses a difference in degree or number rather than on a process of increase.

  3. Yù 愈 (NB: shǎo 少 does not function as an antonym "less and less".) typically refers to a continuous or continuing dynamic increase or process.

  4. Gèng 更 and the rarer words fù 復 and yòu 又 "even more" indicate that the increase is from a level that is already high.

  5. Jiā 加 typically refers to an increase not in the intensity of something, but in the quantity or number.

  6. Yóu 尤 "particularly" singles out an item as instantiating something with particular intensity, more than most other comparable things.

  NB: 愈 may precede non-comparative verbs. Thus yù qǐ 愈起 "tend even more to occur" GUAN 47 could not have yì qǐ 益起. HF 19 has yù wáng 愈亡 "will tend ever more to fail". 愈至 "tend even more to arrive".

• HELP
  

  1. The most general current word for helping someone else to perform a task is probably zhù 助 (ant. zǔ 阻 "hinder") which can refer to support given to men or other creatures.

  2. Yuán 援 typically refers to spontaneous unsolicited and enthusiastic help.

  3. Zuǒ 佐, yòu 佑 (deriving their meaning from the position of aides near the ruler), and also fǔ 輔 refer to official assistance in a formal context.

  4. Fú 扶 is specifially help to those much in need of support.

  5. Yì 益 (ant. sǔn 損 "act to hinder someone's progress") refers to support for someone who is already fairly well equipped for the task he or she gets support for.

  6. Jiǎ 假 refers to - not necessarily overt - discreet support.

  7. Zī 資 refers primarily to providing material support, but the word came to have common wider, generalised applications.

  8. Jì 濟 refers to acute help for a current difficult task.

  9. Yòu 祐 is a very ancient word referring specifically to assistance afforded by supernatural forces.

Word relations
• Ant: (HELP)害/DAMAGE By far the commonest general word for damage is hài 害 (ant. lì 利"benefit").
• Ant: (PROFIT)害/DAMAGE By far the commonest general word for damage is hài 害 (ant. lì 利"benefit"). 1 Attribution
• Ant: (INCREASE)損/REDUCE The current general word for diminishing or lessening anything in any way is sǔn 損 (ant. yì 益 "increase, improve").. 6 Attributions
• Ant: (ADD)損/REDUCE The current general word for diminishing or lessening anything in any way is sǔn 損 (ant. yì 益 "increase, improve").. 2 Attributions
• Epithet: (PROFIT)無 / 毋 / 亡 / 无/LACK The general term for the lack or the failure to have something is wú 無 (ant. yǒu 有 "have"). 1 Attribution
• Contrast: (HELP)補/HELP
• Synon: (INCREASE)增 / 曾/INCREASE Zēng 增 (ant. shǎo 少 "beocme less") typically refers to concrete or material increase of something. 1 Attribution
• Synon: (MORE)彌/MORE Mí 彌 focusses a difference in degree or number rather than on a process of increase. 1 Attribution
• Synon: (MORE)愈/MORE Yù 愈 (NB: shǎo 少 does not function as an antonym "less and less".) typically refers to a continuous or continuing dynamic increase or process. 1 Attribution