Taxonomy of meanings for 往:  

  • wǎng (OC: ɢʷaŋʔ MC: ɦʷiɐŋ) 于兩切 上 廣韻:【之也去也行也至也于兩切二 】
    • GO TO
      • vtoNOBI: set out for; be on one's way; go along to; go to GUAN: 往之, 所往
      • viactset out; go along; walk off
      • vt(oN1).-VtoN2go to a contextually determinate place and V, set out to V; be on one's way to (with a verbal (or subjectless sentential, if one prefers) object) 往拜之
      • vt(oN)go to the contextually determinate place (often answering a summoning by a superior)
      • vt+prep+Ngo to
      • vt-V.+prep+Ngo to V to N
      • viactgo on and on; keep going
      • vt(oN.)-Vimperativego to the contextually determinate place and V!
      • vtoN.-V[0]go to N in order to V
      • vt(oN.)-Vgo out to V
      • vt(oN1.-VtoN2)set out to a certain place to do a certain thing to the object N2
      • vtoNfigurative"go to"
      • vtoN.postadVN=placeintroducing the locative object after verbs of motion or relocation, cf. modern "-到"DS
      • and meet person> VISIT
        • vtoNgo along to visit NCH
        • so as to join> RALLY
          • vtoNrally
          • in order to do as one is told> OBEY
            • viactgo and do as one is told
            • act accordingly> ACT
              • viactgo ahead to, go out to; go ahead and act; go on to act in the future; proceed to do what one is supposed to do
      • iussive:> SEND
        • vtoNsend over
        • vt(oN)send over the contextually determinate objectDS
        • object:gift> GIVE
          • vt[oN]give presents (ant. 來 have gifts coming to one)CH
    • set forth from> LEAVE
      • vt[0][oN]imperative[you] should leave [this place]; go away!
      • vt[oN]go one's way; go away, leave; get out; go out; set out for campaigns
      • vt[oN]imperativeGo away! Be on your way! Buzz off!CH
      • figurative> ISSUE
        • viissue forth; have issued forthCH
      • grammaticalised: starting from this> AFTER
        • vicome afterwards, happen afterwards
      • this world> DIE
        • vileave > pass away, die
        • be bygone> PAST
          • nadSin the past, some time ago
          • v[adN]what is past> the past, what has already happened; what has already been said;  matters of the past; the first thing
          • vadNpast, previous, preceding, last
          • vibe a matter of the past, be past
          • have a past> OLD
            • vadNbygone, already past, previous
            • vibe bygone, be (already) a matter of the past
          • having lasted long> ENDURING
            • vadVover a long period: ever
        • intermittently> OFTEN
          • vadVreduplicated 往往: from time to time, now and again

    Additional information about 往

    說文解字:

      Criteria
    • NEXT

      1. The current general word referring to the next member of a contextually determinate series is cì 次 (ant. qián 前 "preceding"), and the series can be temporal as well as spatial or indeed abstract.

      2. Míng 明 (ant. zuó 昨 "yester-" and zǎo 早 "earlier") refers specifically to the next member of a temporal series of days, months, or years, and míng rì 明日 does not mean "tomorrow" but can refer to tomorrow and must always be understood as "the next day, counting from the other contextually definite day". The other contextually definite day can be, but need not be, the "today" of the speech act in which the word occurs.

      3. Lái 來 (ant. wǎng 往 "preceding" and xī 昔 ) is a deictic expression and refers specifically to the next member of the temporal series beginning with the present time.

      4. Yì 翌 is the ancient OBI word for a period of time that is imminent, and the word always retained a literary, elevated, and even antiquated flavour.

    • RETURN

      1. The standard general word for returning to where one belongs is guī1 歸 (zhī 之 "go to").

      2. Fǎn 反 / 返 (ant. wǎng 往 "set out for") is to get back to where one came from, and the focus is on whereto one returns. 及反 is "when he had got back", 未反 is "before he had god back". 反哭 is wailing upon one's return, not while returning.

      3. Huán 還 (ant. wǎng 往 "set out for") typically refers to turning round and preparing to retrace one's steps or one's route, very often after a military or civil engagement, successful or unseccessful, and the focus is on wherefrom one returns. 還 as a subordinate sentence is "when he was on his way back". See TURN ROUND

      4. Fù 復 (ant. lí 離 "quit") is sometimes used for returning to or regaining a position.

    • THANK

      1. There is no common or current word for "to thank" in classical Chinese. Xiè 謝 is very occasionally used to express this meaning.

      2. Wǎng bài qí mén 往拜其門 (MENG) is a classical periphrastic idiom referring to thanking.

    • BEAUTIFUL

      [ABSOLUTE/GRADED]

      [ACOUSTIC/VISUAL]

      [ARTIFICIAL/NATURAL]

      [[COMMON/RARE]]

      [ELEVATED/VULGAR]

      [GENERAL/SPECIFIC]

      [HUMAN/NON-HUMAN]

      [POETIC/PROSAIC]

      1. The general word is měi 美 "handsome and admirable" (ant. è 惡 "ugly") which refers to anything concrete or abstract which is attractive or handsome in a dignified way, and the word often retains its primary culinary sense of "tasty".

      [GENERAL], [GRADED]; [[COMMON]]

      2. Lì 麗 (ant. sù 素 "unaodorned") is often restricted to physical objects, prototypically to clothes, and emphasises their balanced symmetric beauty, occasionally also - by analogy - the well-aligned symmetric beauty of mountains.

      [ELEVATED], [NON-HUMAN], [VISUAL!]

      3. Wén 文 (ant. zhì 質 "merely material") emphasises cultivated external as well as internal elegance as well as traditionalism.

      [ARTIFICIAL], [ELEVATED], [NON-HUMAN], [VISUAL!]

      4. Yǎ 雅 (ant. sú 俗 "vulgar") emphasises primarily external elevated elegance.

      [ACOUSTIC!], [ARTIFICIAL], [ELEVATED+], [NON-HUMAN]

      5. Hǎo 好 "comely, handsome" (ant. chǒu 醜 "ugly") refers indiscriminately to men and women, but the word is sometimes more general and even abstract in application and refers to attractive words or attractive moral qualities.

      [HUMAN!], [NATURAL], [VISUAL]

      6. Xiù 秀 "of vigorous and imposing beauty" focusses on flourishing and flamboyant beauty in analogy with that of flowers.

      [ELEVATED], [NATURAL], [NON-HUMAN], [POETIC], [VISUAL]; [[RARE]]

      7. Huá 華 "of striking and colourful beauty" (ant. sú 俗 "vulgar") focusses on flourishing and flamboyant superficial or only apparent beauty, on the analogy analogy with that of flowers.

      [ARTIFICIAL], [ELEVATED], NON-HUMAN], [SUPERFICIAL], [VISUAL]

      8. Zhuàng 壯 "stately" (ant. ruò 弱 "weak and unsightly") is virile beauty associated with strength and vigour. See STRONG

      [NATURAL], [MARGINAL], [POETIC]; [[RARE]]

      9. Jiā 佳 "of outstanding beauty" (NB: liè 劣 "unremarkable" is the ant. of jiā 佳 "outstanding", and not in the meaning of "outstandingly beautiful") emphasises comparative beauty compared to others in the same group.

      [GRADED], [ELEVATED], [NATURAL], [POETIC]

      10. Dū 都 "urbane and exquisitely beautiful" (ant. bì 鄙 "rustic and inelegant") is a highly poetic word that can only be used in elevated prose.

      [ARCHAIC], [ELEVATED], [POETIC], [VISUAL]; [[RARE]]

      11. Yán 妍 "attractive and exquisite (of humans as well as human products)" (ant. chì 蚩 "unattractive") refers to elaborate beauty. See SEXY.

      [ARCHAIC], [ELEVATED], [HUMAN], [POETIC]; [[RARE]]

      12. Xiū 脩 / 修 "refined moral beauty" refers to moral as well as physical beauty, thus coming close the Greek kalokagathia, but never approaching the latter in importance as a cultural keyword.

      <div>[ELEVATED], [ARTIFICIAL]; [[RARE]]</div><div><br></div><div>吳蓬,東方審美詞彙集萃,上海文藝出版社,2002 lists the following rough definitions of a variety of terms of aesthetic appreciation by the artist and scholar Wu Peng. Many of these terms express conventional appreciative flattery only. This list does provide one not particularly well-known artist's subjective readings of some basic terms of traditional Chinese aesthetic approbation.</div><div>勃:富有生机之突起。<br>苍:浓的,毛的,老练的。<br>沉:沉着不浮,有重量感。<br>冲:调成和淡之意向。<br>饬:整顿。<br>粗:大而不笨者。<br>淳:清,往往易薄,然而淳是清中滋润之厚。<br>醇:与淳略同,这醇是提炼后的滋润之厚。<br>绰:与"约"字合用,即舒而不纵之意。<br>澹:平静而有幽淡之趣。<br>淡:与浓艳相对。<br>宕:放荡不拘。<br>跌:往往与"宕"字合用,即是起伏明显之状。<br>端:方正而不出偏,有稳实感。<br>敦:很实在的,结实的厚。<br>繁:众而密,有生气。<br>方:与平正同义。<br>丰:饱满而充足。<br>风:审美中之"风"指的是一种气韵格调。<br>飞:大幅度的流动。<br>刚:属于阳性的,有正力的,与柔软相对。</div><div>高:俯视一切的、超然得不一般。<br>工:规矩,不潦草。<br>孤:自我独立。<br>古:旧气,更有历史的抗怀千载之迹象。<br>骨:内在的架子。<br>犷:是跟"雄悍"接近,在粗中发展开来。<br>瑰:不单调的美。<br>乖:不和顺。<br>憨:近于拙朴而敦实。<br>酣:厚润四溢。<br>豪:激动向上之貌,有气魄。<br>宏:大而有气度。<br>厚:有沉积的饱和。<br>华:明亮而艳丽。<br>环:长久圆融之境。<br>荒:与"枯简"接近,不修饰。<br>豁:与开朗接近,然比开朗明显。<br>恢:宽广有余。<br>浑:团然一气之象,有朦胧感。<br>简:经过一番整修的减少。<br>娇:美得可爱。<br>警:审美中用此警字,往往指敏锐、颖达。<br></div><div>劲:能察觉的力。<br>精:很到位。<br>隽:精致而具内涵之美。<br>娟:秀而婉丽。<br>崛:高起而突出。<br>俊:人材杰曲之美。<br>峻:山高而陡。在书画中是浓而锋利之用笔。<br>空:有灵气之空白。<br>枯:干而毛,生的萎缩,然亦是力的显露。<br>宽:大度而畅朗。<br>旷:广阔而空灵。<br>辣:是枯毛爽直的老笔触。<br>朗:明亮而豁然。<br>琅:圆而光润。<br>伦:是同类之意,带有文明意念。<br>冷:跟"淡"与"静”接近,与浓烈相对。<br>炼:精到而有功力。<br>淋:与"漓”往往合用,是无拘束的洒落。<br>流:明显的动感。<br>迈:阔而放的超势。<br>莽:宽广而繁密的,朴直奔放的。<br>袤:与"古"字合用,即悠长久远之趣。<br>茂:有生气的繁密。<br>媚:柔美之趣。<br>宓:安而静。<br>明:清晰有亮度。<br>凝:浓重而不流动。<br>懦:毫无火气之柔软。<br>平:一般的,接近于稳。<br>朴:原始状态,形象较准。<br>嫖:与"姚"字合用,即动疾之状,而有气势。<br>奇:不一般。<br>气:生发的,迎面直扑而来的感觉。<br>清:是混的相对。其间透出一股朗气。<br>峭:山之直而险,在书画中是露锋的侧锋用笔,有明显露<br>尖状态。文章中之峭,是意气直逼。<br>遒:婉转有致,内力强劲。<br>虬:与遒类似,但动感较强,弯曲而有力度。<br>意:诚实谨慎。<br>儒:代表文人之书卷气。<br>洒:散落无拘束。<br>赡:富有与丰实。若与"疏”、"逸”组合即成"澹”或"安"之义。</div><div>骚:审美中之骚字,可引伸为风骚至风流感。<br>韶:美丽有光泽。<br>涩:在不爽快的进程中,流露出内力之美。<br>深:不是浮面的。<br>神:精与气合。高端的。<br>生:不成熟,但比成熟有味。<br>肆:任意放纵。<br>松:松是灵活自然,是一切技巧之本要。<br>瘦:与粗笨相对,在审美中的"瘦",是指细长而精练。<br>疏:一种稀少秀朗之美。<br>肃:有立即静穆下来之势。<br>率:与潦草随便有别,爽快而直接。<br>邃:深远而悠久。<br>阅:通达之意。<br>给:与"宕"合用,是安详舒放之趣。<br>天:很自然,一片天箱之"天"。<br>恬:安静而坦然。<br>挺:直而有生气。<br>婉:柔和而曲折。<br>温:是一种暖调与缓和的综合。</div><div>巍:往往与"峨"合用,是高大厚实之趣。<br>洗:与"炼”合用,即是"精炼"之意,凡物之洁出于洗。<br>犀:与"利"字合用,即坚利。<br>熙:光明,和乐。<br>细:指细而不纤。<br>娴:文静而雅致。<br>闲:一种高雅的自由。<br>萧:疏少有致。<br>潇:散朗而润泽。<br>馨:很醇厚的香气。<br>篁:"篁古”是悠远辽阔之意。<br>雄:强大,有力度,有霸气。<br>秀:灵巧的,有生气的,美好的显露。<br>虚:表象空,但并非真空。<br>雅:文气而不俗。<br>妍:鲜美而柔性。<br>严:认真,不马虎。<br>淹:一种浸沉与精深明达之境。<br>野:超脱、不规范。<br>冶:经过一番精致修饰。<br>逸:悠闲的起伏。</div><div>意:精神倾向。<br>莹:透明而幽亮。<br>雍:往往与“容"字合用,有和顺之貌。<br>幽:静而深。<br>腴:肥润而饱和。<br>郁:厚积而有生气。<br>纤:与"迥"字合用,即弯环回绕之趣。<br>遹:与"瑰"字合用,即纤迥美丽之趣。<br>渊:往往与"懿"合用,是深润而悠美之趣。<br>圆:接近于饱满润滑。<br>蕴:与"藉"合用,即内涵丰富。<br>韵:一种余味不尽之趣。<br>恣:放纵的,无拘束的。<br>滋:湿润感。<br>自:出于本性的流露。<br>质:本体的,实在的。<br>纵:放逸无拘之状。<br>拙:接近朴,形不准。<br>庄:端正之貌。<br>卓:与“荤"合用,是突出明显之状。<br></div><div><br></div><br>

    • LEAVE

      1. The general word for leaving one place for another is qù 去 (ant. liú 留 "remain").

      2. Chū 出 (ant. rù 入 "remain inside") refers to the leaving of an enclosed space.

      3. Wǎng 往 (ant.* jū 居 "stay at home") focusses not only on the leaving but especially on the direction a person takes after leaving.

      4. Lí 離 focusses on the distance established by leaving between a person and the place which he leaves.

    • 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.

    • GO TO

      1. Zhī 之 is to go to a place, typically taking the most direct route, by any conveyance as a result of a decision and typically with the purpose of staying there for a while or conducting some business.

      2. Cào/zào 造 and rú 如 refer to aiming for a destination, and the movement may be by foot or by any conveyance.

      3. Wǎng 往 (ant. jū 居 "remain at home") refers to setting out for a destination by any means of transport or by foot, and the destination is not very often made explicit by an ordinary noun as object. Moreover wǎng 往 does not necessarily imply going somewhere by the most direct route.

      4. Fù 赴 refers to hastening to a (typically dangerous) destination (such as an abyss or fire), or to a place where one is to perform a public duty.

      5. Qū 趨 refers to hurrying politely to a destination.

      6. Shì 適 refers to moving in a certain direction, or heading for a certain place, and the word is also used for arrival at the destination.

      7. Jiù 就 (ant. qù 去 "leave") and the somewhat rarer jí 即 (ant. lí 離 "leave") refer to approaching a certain destination by any means of transport.

      8. Yì 詣 refers to going somewhere to pay a formal visit. See VISIT.

    • 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.

    • OLD

      1. The general term for old age of living creatures is lǎo 老 "of old age" (ant. shào 少 "still youthful" and yòu 幼 "young"), whereas the general term for things not new is jiù 舊 (ant. xīn 新 "new").

      2. Wǎng 往 (ant. lái 來 "future") refers to times past.

      3. Gù 故 (ant. xīn 新 ) refers to what is a matter of the past which typically has an impact on, or traces in, the present.

      4. Chén 陳 (ant. xīn 新 ) refers to what is stale and no longer new and fresh.

      Word relations
    • Conv: (GO TO)來 / 徠/COME
    • Ant: (GO TO)住/REMAIN
    • Ant: (PAST)來/FUTURE The most current and general word for the nominalised notion of the future is probably lái 來 (ant. wǎng 往 "the past").
    • Ant: (LEAVE)返 / 反/RETURN Fǎn 反/返 (ant. wǎng 往 "set out for") is to get back to where one came from, and the focus is on whereto one returns. 及反 is "when he had got back", 未反 is "before he had god back". 反哭 is wailing upon one's return, not while returning.
    • Ant: (GO TO)來 / 徠/COME
    • Assoc: (PAST)/
    • Assoc: (PAST)昔/PAST