GENERATION  世代

PERIOD EQUAL to that of the LIFE of a HUMAN.
AGEAGE GROUPPEER GROUP
Hypernym
  • PERIODTIME CONSISTING of a LIMITED SEQUENCE of MOMENTS.
    • TIMEABSTRACT OBJECT that all EVENTS ARE-IN.
      • OBJECT[NO HYPERNYM.] WHAT one CAN NAME:refer to.
Old Chinese Criteria
1. The dominant general word for a generation is shì 世, and this word has strong temporal connotations referring to the period of one generation, and the word has a certain syntactic flexibility. Sān shì 三世 refers to three generations.

2. Dài 代 refers to the length of a whole dynasty comprising several generations, and the word in this meaning has little syntactic flexibility. Sān dài 三代 refers to three dynasties Xià, Shāng, and Zhōu. See DYNASTY

3. Jì 紀 refers to a cycle of 12 years, sān jì 三紀 refers to a period of thirty-six years, but from Later Han times, the reference is often more generally to a generation.

4. Tiān xià 天下 "all under Heaven" often refers generally to all people alive at a certain time.

5. Shí rén 時人 refers specifically and prosaically to the people of the time.

Modern Chinese Criteria
世代

時世

年頭兒

年月

紀元



rough draft to BEGIN TO identify synonym group members for analysis, based on CL etc. 18.11.2003. CH /

  • 古代文化詞異集類辨考 Gudai wenhua ci yi ji lei bian kao ( HUANG JINGUI 1995) p. 240

  • 古辭辨 Gu ci bian ( WANG FENGYANG 1993) p. 10

  • 王力古漢語字典 ( WANG LI 2000) p. 17

    1. Whereas da4i 代 is rigidly nominal, shi4 世 is currently adverbial and has some other usages.

  • 古漢語常用詞同義詞詞典 ( HONG CHENGYU 2009) p. 13

  • New Dictiornary of the History of Ideas, 6 vols. ( HOROWITZ 2005) p.

Words

  shì OC: lʰebs MC: ɕiɛi 91 Attributions

The dominant general word for a generation is shì 世, and this word has strong temporal connotations referring to the period of one generation, and the word has a certain syntactic flexibility. Sān shì 三世 refers to three generations.

    Word relations
  • Epithet: 後/LATE The current general word for lateness is hòu 後 (ant. xiān 先 "earlier"), and this word refers to anything that comes later in time than something else.
  • Epithet: 亂/CHAOS The very dominant word in this group is luàn 亂 (ant. zhì 治 "state of good government, state of good order") which refers to all kinds of reprehensible lack of order.
  • Epithet: 治/ORDERLY
  • Epithet: 衰/DECLINE
  • Epithet: 學/LEARN Xué 學 is conative and means "try to learn". See STUDY.
  • Epithet: 學/KNOW
  • Contrast: 代/GENERATION Dài 代 refers to the length of a whole dynasty comprising several generations, and the word in this meaning has little syntactic flexibility. Sān dài 三代 refers to three dynasties Xià, Shāng, and Zhōu. See DYNASTY
  • Assoc: 後/LATE The current general word for lateness is hòu 後 (ant. xiān 先 "earlier"), and this word refers to anything that comes later in time than something else.

    Syntactic words
  • ncpost-V1{NUM}. zhī V2adnominalV2-ed for V1 number of generationsCH
  • none's own time; our own time; (e.g. the present) age, historical period; historical conditions; specifically: a period of thirty years.
  • n(post-N)the generation of the contextually determinate N, the contemporaries of the contextually determinate NCH
  • n.red:adVfor generations on end; for generations to come
  • n[post-N]contemporaryone's own generation, one's own epoch; the contemporary world
  • n[post-N]pluralthe continuous line of generations of humans
  • nabthe current state of affairs in the worldCH
  • nabtime span of one generationCH
  • nadNof the (present) generationCH
  • nadVtimefrom generation to generation, from one generation to the next; for generations on end
  • ncpost-V1{NUM}:postadV2for generations 數世
  • npluralpersons of a generationCH
  • npost-N1[.adN2]humanthe people of the  generation of NCH
  • npost-V{NUM}NUM generations
  • vi0a generation passes
天下  tiān xià OC: lʰiin ɢraaʔ MC: then ɦɣɛ 10 Attributions

Tiān xià 天下 "all under Heaven" often refers generally to all people alive at a certain time.

    Syntactic words
  • NPpluralmankind at a given time
時人  shí rén OC: ɡljɯ njin MC: dʑɨ ȵin 3 Attributions

Shí rén 時人 refers specifically and prosaically to the people of the time.

    Syntactic words
  • NP{N1adN2}nonreferentialpeople of the time
  dài OC: lɯɯɡs MC: dəi 2 Attributions

Dài 代 refers to the length of a whole dynasty comprising several generations, and the word in this meaning has little syntactic flexibility. Sān dài 三代 refers to three dynasties Xià, Shāng, and Zhōu. See DYNASTY

    Word relations
  • Contrast: 世/GENERATION The dominant general word for a generation is shì 世, and this word has strong temporal connotations referring to the period of one generation, and the word has a certain syntactic flexibility. Sān shì 三世 refers to three generations.

    Syntactic words
  • ngeneration
  • n.red:adVREDUP: generation after generation, through successive generations
  shí OC: ɡljɯ MC: dʑɨ 2 Attributions
    Syntactic words
  • nchanging times and conditions
世人  shì rén OC: lʰebs njin MC: ɕiɛi ȵin 1 Attribution
    Syntactic words
  • NPpluralcontemporaries
世代  shì dài MC: -- dojH OC: -- lɯɯɡsCH 1 Attribution
    Syntactic words
  • NPpluralgenerationsCH
奕世  yì shì MC: yek -- OC: k-laɡ lʰebsDS 1 Attribution
    Syntactic words
  • NPadVfor many generations; from one generation to the other oneDS
  jì OC: kɯʔ MC: kɨ 0 Attributions

Jì 紀 refers to a cycle of 12 years, sān jì 三紀 refers to a period of thirty-six years, but from Later Han times, the reference is often more generally to a generation.

    Syntactic words
  • nperiod of twelve years GY: 蓄力一紀
  háng OC: ɢaaŋ MC: ɦɑŋ 0 Attributions
    Syntactic words
  • nabsocialorder of members of a clan in one generation
  Click here to add pinyin MC:  OC: CH 0 Attributions
    Syntactic words
  • NPpluralgenerationsCH

Existing SW for

Here are Syntactic Words already defined in the database: