The official words

Vocabulary

984 words.

Each word has one unique simplified character. Here are their readings, Sino-Mini meanings, and Chinese meanings. Pronunciations can overlap. Only the Sino-Mini column defines the adopted meaning; Chinese source glosses do not add extra senses.

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Longer expressions are ordinary phrases, with no separate dictionary meanings. See Phrase examples.

984 of 984 entries
Word & readingSino-Mini meaningChinese meaning
ā
noun object; identity/category; subjectless existence
Usage & scope

Introduces a noun object or identity/category complement. Subjectless 啊 noun asserts existence; 不 啊 noun denies it.

ah; an exclamation or sentence particle
ēi
quality/state predicate; licensed descriptive result; ambient quality
Usage & scope

Introduces a quality/state predicate or licensed result description. Initial 诶 quality states an ambient condition.

hey/eh; an attention-getting exclamation
verbal predicate marker
Usage & scope

Introduces the verbal predicate. Initial 咿 without a subject marks a command. Sound-based yī.

sound of creaking, babbling, or vocalization
de
phrase grouping; manner separation
Usage & scope

Separates grouped modifiers, or a verb from its manner. A B 的 C groups [A B] as modifier of C. Not required for possession.

structural particle linking modifiers; possession / attribution
first personI; me
second personyou
third personhis/her/its; their; that (literary)
that; distal demonstrativethat; there
zhè
this
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Here is a location reading not clearly distinguished in the headword.

this
question word; post-head finite-clause modifier introducer
Usage & scope

Interrogative, or post-head clause introducer under the positional rules. No closing word.

can; may; permit; approve
and; coordination
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: With/accompaniment conflicts with 跟; harmony and peace introduce independent content meanings.

and; with; harmony; peace
dàn
but; contrast
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Except is subtraction from a set rather than ordinary discourse contrast.

but; only
huò
or, eitheror; perhaps
cóng
from; source relation
Usage & scope

Source/from. In 从 咿, forms a passive participle whose head supplies the first direct-object role. This is a grammatical construction, not a separate word.

from; follow
zài
location relation; progressive operator; active-participle introducer
Usage & scope

After a head: location. Before an action in a verbal predicate: progressive. Before 咿/诶/啊 in noun position: active-participle construction.

at; in; on; exist
wǎng
go toward; towardtoward; go toward
gēn
with; accompanimentwith; accompany; follow; heel
tóng
same; equal
Usage & scope

Exact sameness/equality in the relevant comparison. Loose resemblance uses 像.

same; together with
ǹg
yes; affirmative response
Usage & scope

Affirmative interjection, ǹg. Not a structural particle.

interjection expressing affirmation or assent
no, not
Usage & scope

Sole grammatical negator and short no response.

not; no
quán
all, everythingall; whole
líng
nothing, zerozero
gèng
higher degree; moremore; even more
duō
many; much; a lot
Usage & scope

Many/much; genuine very is 很.

many; much
tài
too, too muchtoo; excessively; very
oneone
èr
twotwo
sān
threethree
fourfour
hòu
afterafter; behind
shòu
animal
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Current broad animal scope differs from the narrower Chinese cue.

beast; animal
qián
before; in front; forward
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Forehead is a particular body part, not a general front relation.

front; forward; before; ago
wèi
taste; flavor
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Smell and taste share a sensory domain but are separable channels.

taste; flavor; smell
yǒu
have; possesshave; possess; exist
strike; hitting
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A fight/battle involves an event structure beyond a single strike.

hit; beat; fight
bàng
stick, rodstick; rod
kāi
open; start; begin an actionopen; start up; begin operating
shēn
bodybody
kǒu
mouthmouth
hǎo
goodgood
yīng
should, obligationshould; ought to
shì
demonstration, indicate, showshow; indicate
gěi
give, giftgive; for
nán
difficult; difficulty
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Problem can mean a task or issue that is not difficult.

difficult; hard
diàn
electricity; electric
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A flash is not necessarily electrical.

electricity; electric; lightning
jiā
home; household
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Individual relatives and domestication go beyond a household/place category.

home; family; household
woman, femalewoman; female
zhōng
end; finalend; finish
huǒ
fire; burning by fire
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: General hot duplicates 热 and does not entail fire; its note already rejects that extension.

fire
xiàng
resemble; representation
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A representation, visible appearance, and apparent truth are different uses.

image; appearance; resemble; look like; seem like
dào
path, way, roadroad; way; path
join, group, togetherjoin; combine
law; rule
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An instruction need not be a rule or law.

law; method
xiāng
boxbox; chest
shǐ
feces, s***feces
hēi
dark, blackblack; dark
néng
ability; be able
Usage & scope

Ability/capacity to perform an action. Physical energy needs an explicitly stated measurable capacity, system, and units; 能 量 has no fixed energy definition.

ability; be able; energy
tóu
headhead
liú
keep; retain; stay; remain; remainderstay; retain; leave behind
color, colorfulcolor
xīn
heartheart; mind
thing; stuff; matter; material; substancething; object; material substance in compounds
lěng
cool, coldcold
páng
side, adjacentside; beside
shēng
rise; elevate
Usage & scope

Rise/elevate only. Litre uses L in the unit notation register.

rise; elevate; liter
线
xiàn
lineline; thread
chù
location, locate, placeplace; location
wán
game, playplay; have fun
yuè
moon; month; monthlymoon; month
guāng
lightlight
zuò
make; do; create; causedo; make
huài
badbad; broken
rén
person, humanperson; human
shí
food, eatfood; eat (literary)
shǒu
handhand
maybe, possibility
Usage & scope

Perhaps/possibility.

perhaps (in 也许/或许); allow
big; great; largebig; great; large
zhuō
tabletable
xiǎo
small, littlesmall; little
shì
see; view; watch; visionsee; view; watch; vision
qián
moneymoney
míng
name; to namename
xiě
write, a writingwrite
xīn
newnew
shù
numbernumber; count
bié
other, differentother; different
huà
speech; words; conversationspeech; words; conversation
breadsteamed bread; bun
guò / guo
pass; cross; prior-experience operator
Usage & scope

Lexical guò means pass/cross; neutral guo before an action marks prior experience. This positional grammatical contrast is retained.

pass; past; cross
xiǎng
think, thoughtthink; want
piece, part, componentpart; section
power, force, strongstrength; force; power
kuài
fast, speed, quicklyfast; quick
strange; unusual in character
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Statistical rarity and strangeness can diverge.

strange; rare; wonderful
xiū
rest; take a breakrest; cease
shí
rockstone; rock
yuán
circle, round, aroundround; circle
clothing, wearclothes; clothing
shèng
holy, spiritualholy; sacred
zhī
know, understand, knowledgeknow; knowledge
tiān
skysky; heaven
zhōng
centermiddle; center
sun; day; datesun; day; day of the month
shēng
sound; voice
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Calling out is a sound action; summoning someone is a communicative purpose.

sound; voice; tone; noise
táng
sugar, sweetsugar; sweets
shàng
above, over, upabove; up; on
shí
timetime; hour
earth; ground; land; territoryearth; ground; land; territory
taketake; obtain
xià
under, below, downbelow; down
device; implement; utensil; vesseldevice; implement; utensil; vessel
yòng
use, tooluse
shuǐ
waterwater
cài
plant, vegetablevegetable; dish
lái
comecome
zhēn
true, truth, reallytrue; real
jīng
through, across, trans-pass through; via
nán
man, maleman; male
shēng
life, livelife; live; birth
want, desirewant; desire
nüè
abuse; mistreat
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Violating any rule, assault, and sexual assault are not interchangeable events.

abuse; cruel
zhù
help; assistance
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Concern, care, advocacy, and structural backing have different implications.

help; assist; aid
nián
adhere, stick, cling, sticky, gluesticky; stick
dùn
shield, armorshield
air, atmosphere, gasair; gas
drown
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Submersion alone does not assert drowning.

drown
yīng
bird of prey
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Eagle and hawk are distinct members of a broad category.

eagle; hawk
líng
age; duration since origin
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An eon is a large duration, not an age; age as action has unregistered argument choices.

age
chéng
program, agenda, plan, computer programprogram; procedure; course
axe; hatchet
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Machete is another tool; chopping does not require an axe.

ax
zhàng
financial account; ledger
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Financial accounts and recounting a story share an English word, not a semantic core.

account; ledger; debt
kòng
accuse, accusation, charge (legal)accuse; charge; control
ruì
sharp, acute, keensharp; keen
foreign, aliendifferent; foreign; strange
suàn
garlicgarlic
xìng
almond
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A nut, tonsil, and amygdala cannot be interchangeable labels.

apricot; in 杏仁 'apricot kernel/almond'
yǒu
friend, acquaintance, befriend, friendlyfriend
ài
love, dearlove
amuse, entertain, fun, entertainmentamuse; entertain
rèn
any (determiner), whichever, anyoneany; whichever; appoint
líng
soul, spiritspirit; soul
hái
still; continuing to a reference point
Usage & scope

Still; continuing to the reference point. 还 不 is not yet. No unrestricted scalar/additive even.

still; yet; also
nián
year, annualyear
jiāo
scorch; char; burntscorch; char; burnt
fǎn
against, anti-, opposite, opposing, opposeopposite; against; reverse
ancient; old from a remote period
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Antiquity of an object/time and age of a living individual need not be the same.

ancient; old
xuān
announce, announcement, declare, declarationannounce; declare
fēng
bee or wasp
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: These are related animals, not synonyms.

bee; wasp
zhū
spider, arachnidspider
wàng
hope; hopeful expectation
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Waiting need not involve hope; expectation need not be a wish.

hope; expect; gaze
area; region; domain
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Spatial extent/size is a quantity, not necessarily a region.

region; domain
jiàn
arrow, dartarrow
yǔn
consent; agree; acceptance of a proposal; agreement; pactallow; consent
suān
sour
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Vinegar is one substance, and taste is not a complete chemical definition.

sour; acid
asylum, refuge, sheltershelter; protect
yǐn
attract, attractionattract; draw; lead
yǎn
perform; enact a role
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Performance does not cover every action, behavior, or being active.

perform; act
atom; atomic
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Chinese cue suggests particles generally, but the Sino-Mini entry selects atoms.

particle; grain
jǐng
warn; alert
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Attention need not involve a warning or danger.

warn; alert; police
eighteight
luggage, baggage, gear, personal effects, to lugbaggage; military supplies (literary)
wān
bay; gulf; cove
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Golf is a source typo, not a sense of the geographical word.

bay; inlet
low, short (height)low
bèi
back (body + adv), rear side, backward, behindback of body; back side
héng
balance; equilibrium
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A balanced distribution and a fair one need not be the same.

weigh; balance
jīng
cetacean; whale, dolphin, or porpoise
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Whales, dolphins, and porpoises are different members of a stated class.

whale
qiú
ball; sphere
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Rolling is a motion also possible for nonspherical objects.

ball; sphere
xióng
bear (animal)bear
jiāo
bananabanana (in 香蕉); plantain
dài
band, strip, ribbon, tape, stripeband; belt; ribbon
flag, bannerflag
àn
shore, beach, coast, littoralshore; bank
bath, bathebathe; bath
barrage, dam, block, impede, obstruct, hinderblock; obstruct
zhòng
weight, weigh, heavyheavy; weight
shì
market, bazaar, fair, to shopmarket; city
base; foundation
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Floor, ground, and a basis overlap but are not equivalent.

base; foundation
jūn
microorganism; microbe
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Bacteria, fungi, and germs have overlapping but different scopes.

bacterium; fungus; germ
jìn
immerse; dip
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Baptism is a ritual that need not be identified merely by immersion.

immerse; soak
yīng
babybaby; infant
měi
beautiful, beauty, beautifybeautiful; beauty
belly; abdomen
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: The stomach organ is only one part of the abdominal region.

abdomen; belly
wān
bend, curve, flexbend; curve
benefit, advantage, perk, beneficialbenefit; advantage
rán
fuel
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Fuel is a category; gasoline and benzene cannot both be exact readings of the same bare word.

burn; combustible; fuel-related
méi
berry; small fleshy fruit in the everyday berry category
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Grapes/olives are specific fruits; an exact botanical category is not established.

berry
wěn
kisskiss
special, especially, particular, exceptionalspecial; particular
guài
monster
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Beast can mean an ordinary animal or an imagined threatening creature.

monster; strange
tóng
concrete
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Cement, concrete, and paving are not interchangeable.

concrete (construction abbreviation)
bái
whitewhite
yǐn
drinkdrink
bǎo
jewel, gem, jewelrytreasure; precious object
huì
beak
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A spout is a functional analogy and pecking an action.

beak; snout
quàn
ticket; token granting a specified claim
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Bill may mean banknote or invoice; a ticket does not encode both.

ticket; voucher; certificate
beer, alebeer (in 啤酒)
máng
busy; occupied
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Hurrying can occur without being busy, and busy activity need not be fast.

busy
shāng
commerce; commercial activity
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A firm and negotiation are participants/actions, not synonyms for commerce.

commerce; business
pào
bubble
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Boiling and making bubbles are not equivalent processes.

bubble; soak
gōng
bow weapon
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An architectural arch is a shape analogy; a vault adds structural meaning.

bow (weapon)
wǎn
bowlbowl
glass
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Crystal and transparent material are not identical material categories.

glass (in 玻璃)
dàn
projectile; ammunition
Usage & scope

Ammunition/projectile only, read dàn. Mechanical spring is 簧; plucking is a described action.

projectile; bullet; bomb; pluck; spring
mèn
boring, bore, tediumbored; gloomy; stuffy
beard, facial hairbeard; must
diàn
shop, store, boutiqueshop; store
píng
bottlebottle
niǔ
button, pressbutton, knob, studbutton; knob
niú
bovine animal
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Cow, ox, bison, buffalo refer to different animals or life roles.

ox; cow; cattle
shū
bookbook; writing
lán
blueblue
float, buoy, buoyant, a floatfloat
butter, butteryflaky; crisp; butter (in 酥油)
zhèng
evidence
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Evidence, conclusive proof, and testimony have different evidential force.

evidence; proof; testify
wēi
danger, dangerousdanger; perilous
xiè
thanks, to thank, thankfulthank
dancedance
gǎn
dare; be bold; challengedare
biàn
argue, debate, dispute, argumentdebate; argue
ruò
weak, weakness, feebleweak
defend, guard, protect, protection, defenseprotect; guard
disgust, disgusting, revulsion, sickenloathe; disgust
already, by now/thenalready
shì
decorate, ornamentation, adorn, fancydecorate; adorn
hóng
flood
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Being overwhelmed psychologically or numerically need not involve water.

flood; vast
devil, demon, diabolicaldemon; devil
then, in that casethen; in that case
tooth
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Biting is a tooth action, but an action frame must say what is affected.

tooth
shén
god, divinegod; deity
zhèng
correct; upright; just; morally rightcorrect; upright; just
jué
decide, decision, adjudicate, resolve, settledecide
huì
draw; depict; drawing; sketch; graphical design; blueprintdraw; depict
xiáng
detail, detailed, meticulousdetailed; thorough
chá
detect, find, notice, discovery, discoveryobserve; inspect; detect
develop, grow, growth, developmentgrow; nurture; develop
zuàn
diamond, adamantdiamond; drill
sàn
spread, diffuse, diffusiondisperse; spread
zhǐ
finger or toe; digit of a hand or foot
Usage & scope

A deliberately broad hand/foot digit category. 手 指 and 足 指 qualify location without creating dictionary words.

finger; point
hòu
thick
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Bodily fatness and dietary fat differ from thickness.

thick
wàng
forget
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Forgetting and forgiving are different acts; the note explicitly says so.

forget
shēn
deep, depth, profounddeep
shuō
say; tell; speak; uttersay; tell; speak; utter
xiàng
direction, orientation, guidance, course, directdirection; toward
hào
waste (use without good purpose), squanderconsume; waste; expend
qián
dive, plunge, submergedive; submerge; hidden
fēn
divide; separate; division
Usage & scope

Division only. Minutes are numerical quantities in the min notation register; no second lexical sense.

divide; separate; minute (time unit)
gǒu
dogdog
lóng
dragondragon
qiú
request, ask, prayer, invocation, plea, petitionask; request; seek
doubtdoubt; suspect
tòng
suffer, pain, suffering, hurt, painfulpain; ache
enslaved person; enslave
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A paid/free servant is not thereby enslaved.

slave
lín
shower, to shower, downpourdrench; shower
jiāo
teach, educate, education, educatedteach
xiào
effect, result, to effect, effectiveeffect; effectiveness
self, own (adj)self; oneself
wài
out, ex-, away, externaloutside; external
xiǎng
resound; echo
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Optical reflection and resounding are different processes.

resound; ring; sound; echo-related
jiǎn
thrifty; frugal; economical in use of resources; thriftfrugal; economical
huáng
spring, coil, elastic, springyspring; reed
xiàng
elephantelephant
xuǎn
elect, election, select, choose, selectionchoose; elect
xuán
rotate; spiral/twist form
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A propeller is a device, not every spiral or rotating thing.

spiral; rotate
qíng
emotion, emotional, passionate, emoteemotion; feeling
enemy, nemesisenemy
puzzle, enigma, riddleriddle; puzzle
meet, encounter, meetingmeet; encounter
cháng
intestines, bowel, entrails, gutintestine
envy, jealousenvy; jealousy
jìng
environment, habitat, ambient, milieuenvironment; surroundings; territory
urgent; urgency
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An emergency and urging are related but not equivalent.

urgent; anxious
erase, erasure, remove, wipe awayrub; wipe; erase
to stand, upright, erectstand; upright
cuò
error, mistake, errwrong; error
kǎo
test; examination
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An interview need not be a test, and an investigation need not be an exam.

examine; test
jīng
precise; exact in the relevant dimension
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Methodical does not imply precision.

precise; refined; essence
dōng
easteast
cún
exist, existence, existentexist; remain
fèn
excite, excitedexcited; rouse oneself
xué
learn, study, researchlearn; study
evening, nightnight
shì
event, case (instance), occurenceevent; matter; affair
avoid, dodge, shun, avoidanceavoid
wén
fame, famous, gloryrenown; hear; news
hungry, hunger, faminehunger; famine
guǐ
ghost, spirit, phantomghost
yuǎn
far; remote
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Extreme is not always distance.

far; distant
fěn
powder; flour
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Sand need not be powder; grinding is a process rather than a synonym for powder.

powder; flour
liǎn
face, to face someoneface
easy, ease, simple, straightforwardeasy; change
mìng
fate, destinyfate; life; command
lèi
tire, tiredtired
chǎng
factory, mill, plantfactory
dòu
pulse; bean, pea, or lentil seed
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Beans, peas, and lentils are subtypes.

bean
like; pleasure
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Doing someone a favor is not the same as favoring/liking them.

like; happy
fertile
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Fertilizer is an input and productive extends far beyond fertility.

fertile; rich
zhǎo
fen, swamp, bog, marshmarsh; swamp
zhà
fence, barrier, partition, hedge, fence offfence; railing
chǒu
uglyugly
xiān
fairy, sprite, pixieimmortal; fairy-like being
tiě
iron; iron-based metal
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Steel is not pure iron.

iron
guǒ
fruit, bear fruitfruit
qìng
party, celebratecelebrate
shāo
fever, feverishburn; fever
thread; strand; fiber
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Silk, wire, and dietary roughage introduce particular materials and functions.

silk; thread-like thing; filament
xìn
believe; trust
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Loyalty is conduct/commitment, not necessarily belief.

trust; believe; faith; confidence
gān
liverliver
xíng
shape; form
Usage & scope

Shape/form only. A statue or figurine needs a description of the object.

form; shape
pái
steak; chop; substantial cut of meat
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Fillet and filleting need not match the same cut or technique.

row; chop/steak in food names
child; offspring
Usage & scope

Child/offspring only. Plant seed uses 种.

child; offspring; seed
zhé
philosophy, philosophical, philosophizewise; philosophy (in 哲学)
huā
flowerflower
liè
crack, fissure, crackedcrack; split
kǒng
fear; dread; horrorfear; dread; horror
leaf; thin sheet/page
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Being a sheet does not mean flat, and flat does not mean a leaf.

leaf
foam, froth, suds, mousse, latherfoam; froth
quán
natural water spring
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A fountain or dug well need not be a spring.

spring; fountain
lín
forestforest; woods
dig; excavate
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Burying and digging are different acts.

dig
táo
flee, escape, run awayescape; flee
mǎn
full; filled to a relevant capacity
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Whole can mean complete rather than filled.

full; fill
yān
smoke
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Tobacco, cigarettes, and cigars are products/materials that generate smoke.

smoke; tobacco; cigarette
méi
fungus, mold, mildewmold; mildew
kǒng
hole, gap, aperture, to drill, borehole; opening
anger, angryanger
róng
melt; fuse by melting
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Pouring an already-liquid substance does not imply melting.

melt; fuse
yuán
garden, a park, recreation areagarden; park
cǎo
grass, herb, lawngrass; herb
gram (SI)gram; overcome
yíng
win; victory; winnings or prize from winningwin; profit
qiàn
yawn, gapeyawn; owe; lack
garagestorehouse; garage (in 车库)
zhàn
station, depotstation; stand
māo
cat; feline animal
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Catty as spiteful behavior is an English association, not a cat category.

cat
lizardlizard
zài
again, repeat, repetition, re-again
chéng
inherit; inheritance
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A gene is a biological unit, not inheritance itself.

inherit; receive; undertake
zhàn
warwar; battle
plucked string instrument
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Guitar and lute are different subtypes of a stated instrument family.

plucked lute-related (in 琵琶)
jiāo
rubber, rubberyglue; rubber
mushroommushroom
drop, bead, blob, spot, dripdrop; drip
government, governgovernment office; mansion
hóu
throat, gulletthroat
qiāng
gun, rifle, shootgun
tīng
hear, listenhear; listen
meaning; intended semantic content
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Meaning, intention, and an idea may differ even within one sentence.

idea; thought; intention; meaning; sense
tree, woodwood; tree
dǎo
islandisland
lìng
command; order
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Empire and imperial are not synonymous with commanding.

command; order
yào
important, importance, to matterimportant; want
gōng
industry, industrialwork; industry
hell, to damn, hellishprison; hell (in 地狱)
hòng
infinity, infinitevast; infinite (rare/literary)
xùn
information, inform, informativenews; information
shāng
wound, injure, injurywound; injury
chóng
insect, buginsect; bug; worm
jiān
between, inter-between; interval
zhì
smart, intelligenceintelligence; wisdom
interest, interestinginterest; delight
chuàng
invent, invention, inventivecreate; originate
tóu
invest, investmentinvest; throw
yāo
invite, invitationinvite
fán
irritate, bother, pester, annoyancevexed; bother; annoying
fěng
mock; satirize
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Situational irony need not involve sarcasm or any speaker mocking someone.

satirize; mock
bīng
ice, freezeice
xún
search, hunt, pursuit, seek, questseek; search
ǎo
jacket, coatcoat; jacket
nuò
promise, vow, pledge, swearpromise
jug; pitcher; serving pot
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Mug and beaker overlap 杯 and lack the same shape/function.

pot; jug
guàn
shrub, bushshrub/bush (in 灌木); irrigate
gel, goop, jelly, blob, paste, mushpaste; mush
shuāng
twinpair; double; twin
bīn
polite, gentle, gracious, courteousrefined; polite
láo
prison, jail, imprisonjail; firm
hǎn
yell, scream, shout, exclaimshout; yell
zhì
throw; cast
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Throwing, shooting, and hitting have different event structures.

throw; cast
jīn
metal; metallic
Usage & scope

General metal. No automatic exact gold reading. Name or define the specific metal in a precision context.

gold; metal
zhuǎn
turn, gyrate, spin, whirlturn; rotate
xuè
joke, jestjest; joke (literary)
joy; happy
Usage & scope

Joy/happiness only; the yuè music reading is not adopted. Describe music with pitched sounds and artistic performance.

joy; happy; music
jiá
cheek, jowlcheek
tiào
jump, bounce, leap, hop, skip, bouncejump
gāng
just (adv), very recently, to have just ...,just; only just; hard
zhī
juice, juicyjuice
yīn
cause; reason; because; causal relationbecause; cause
guì
cabinet, hutch, wardrobecabinet; cupboard
tàn
carbon
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Coal is a material containing carbon, not the element itself.

carbon
bào
explode, explosion, blast, detonate, popexplode; burst
měi
each, respectivelyeach; every
liàn
chain, fetterschain
card; flat card-like token
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Cardboard is material and charter is a legal document, neither guaranteed by card.

card
coffee, cafecoffee (in 咖啡)
lóng
cage, ribcagecage
calendar, schedule, timetablecalendar; experience
zhì
property; quality
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: English -ness and the verb attribute imply operations not defined by the word.

quality; substance
heat; hot
Usage & scope

Heat/hot only. A caloric unit, if needed, is identified explicitly in technical notation.

heat; hot
chuáng
bedbed
huàn
exchange, trade, barterexchange; change
shì
room; chamberroom; chamber
walk, ambulate, stroll, hikestep; walk
shān
shirtshirt; upper garment
tián
field; agricultural land
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Camping and a campsite are activities/places that need not be fields.

field
canal, channel, gutter, moatcanal; channel
jiān
shoulder, shrugshoulder
zhú
candlecandle
guì
cinnamoncassia; cinnamon tree
pào
cannon; artillery
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A gun barrel is part of a weapon, not the whole weapon.

cannon
xiè
crabcrab
sing, song, tune, melodysong; sing
capture, catch, seize, grasp, captive, grabcapture; catch
fāng
square, plazasquare; direction
sài
race, competition, competecompete; contest
chē
car, vehicle, drivevehicle; car
fáng
house; building; housinghouse; building; housing
bǎo
castle, fortressfort; castle
almostalmost (literary)
qiē
cut, incision, slice, chopcut; slice
jiàn
swordsword
equine animal
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Horse, donkey, mule are related but distinct.

horse
dòng
cave, caverncave; hole
lào
cheesecheese; curd
gāo
cakecake
huī
graygray; ash
yào
medicine, medicinalmedicine; drug
jiǎo
angle; corner
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An animal horn is a separate referent.

horn; angle; corner
táo
ceramic, pottery, china, terracota, clay potpottery; ceramic
cross; intersect; intersection
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An intersection shape and a crucifix used as a religious object should not be automatically equivalent.

interlocking; mutual; crosswise
yào
key, unlockkey
qiān
thousandthousand
yǐng
film, movie, cinematic, to filmfilm; image; shadow
huáng
grasshopper, cricket, or locust
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An informal animal grouping is not necessarily a single exact taxon.

locust
leave, quit, abandon, exitleave; depart
wěi
tail, codatail
code, cipher, program codecode; number
collect, collection, gathercollect; gather
kneeknee
zhuàng
crash, collision, collidecollide; crash
shān
mountain; hill
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Any bump/protrusion greatly broadens the category.

mountain; hill
zhí
colony, colonial, colonizecolonize; reproduce
zhù
column; pillar
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A spine is a particular anatomical structure.

pillar; column
dòu
clause boundary; pause dividing an utterance
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A clause and a comma are grammatical unit versus writing mark.

pause in reading (historical 句读)
dòu
comedy, humor, funnyfunny; amuse; tease
compare; compared with; comparison standardcompare; than
suàn
calculate; compute; countcalculate; compute
gōng
community, communal, publicpublic; common
tài
condition, statestate; condition
shū
comfortable, comfort, cozycomfortable; relaxed
huò
confusion, confuse, confusing, perplexconfused; puzzled
shellshell
zhuī
conecone; awl
jué
awareness; conscious; consciousnessconsciousness; awareness; feel
bēi
cup, drinking vessel, chalicecup
mǎi
buy, a purchasebuy
tóng
coppercopper
láng
hall, corridorcorridor; hall
yóu
mail, letter, postmail; post
chú
kitchen, to cookkitchen; cook-related
jià
cost, price, to costprice; cost
mián
cottoncotton
gài
cover; covering
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Blanket, cloak, and shawl are types of covers/clothes, not exact synonyms.

cover; lid
zhǒu
elbow
Usage & scope

Elbow only; nudging is a specified contact action. No cubit unit meaning.

elbow
kuài
block; lump
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A cube is a geometric subtype, and a brick a construction product.

block; lump; piece
chí
spoonspoon
wén
culture, culturalculture; writing
rabbit, hare, bunnyrabbit
lián
curtain, drape, screen, blindscurtain
pǎo
run, sprint, jogrun
biǎo
cousincousin-related (maternal or paternal aunt's children); external
tǒng
tub, barrel, vat, tankbarrel; bucket; tub
chún
lip, rim, brimlip
láo
work, labor, hard-workinglabor; toil
ladder, escalator, stairs, stepsladder; stairs
lèi
tears, to crytear; tears
lake; natural inland body of standing water
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Pond overlaps 池.

lake
trash, garbage, waste, to throw awaygarbage (in 垃圾)
duǎn
short (length), curt, briefshort; brief
dēng
lamplamp
máo
animal hair; fur
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Wool is a particular fiber source.

hair; fur; wool; down
ràng
let, allow, license, permission, licitlet; allow; yield
lǎn
disinclined to exert effort; lazy
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Inactivity need not be laziness.

lazy
kuān
wide; width
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Latitude is a geographic coordinate or figurative freedom, not width.

wide; broad
washwash
yuè
read, a reading, well-readread; inspect
jìng
mirror
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A lens and a mirror perform different optical functions.

mirror; lens; optical glass
màn
slow, slowlyslow
shī
big cat
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Lion, tiger, panther are different members.

lion
zuǒ
left (direction)left
responsible, liable, liability, responsibilityduty; responsibility; blame
shì
freedom, free, liberaterelease; set free; explain
lǐng
lead, leader, direct, guidelead; guide; collar
jié
tie, bind, knot, league, link, connectiontie; knot; unite
liquid, liquify, fluidliquid
purple, lilacpurple
snail or slug
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: All mollusks would include animals outside that everyday grouping.

snail
xiàn
limit, limited, restriction, boundary, borderlimit; boundary
níng
lemon or lime
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: All citrus is broader than lemon and lime.

lemon-related (in 柠檬)
ruǎn
soft; limp/flaccid material
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Walking with a limp is English homonymy.

soft; limp; weak
shé
tongue; language
Usage & scope

The tongue and, by the retained deliberate metaphor, a language. 小舌 remains the proper name; ordinary phrases follow the grammar. Licking must be described as an action.

tongue
zhī
fat; grease
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Fattening and frying do not follow from a substance name alone.

fat; grease
foxfox
written character; letter
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Literature is a body of work, not a written symbol; spelling is an action over symbols.

written character; letter
suǒ
lock, to lock, latch, bolt, clasplock
fēng
crazy, mad, insane, maddeninsane; crazy
cháng
long; length
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Longitude is a specific coordinate, not general length.

long; length
shī
lose; loss; failure
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Losing possession and failing an event have different argument frames.

lose; loss
huá
slip, slide, slippery, glideslippery; slide
shē
luxury, luxurious, opulence, fancyextravagant; luxurious
xìng
fortune, luck, luckygood fortune; fortunate
zhū
pearlpearl; bead
fèi
lungslung
láng
wolfwolf
honeyhoney
magnet, magneticmagnetism; magnetic
huàn
magic, magical, conjureillusion; magical; unreal
machine; apparatus; motor; enginemachine; mechanism; engine-related
bìng
malady, sickness, ill, diseaseillness; disease
chuí
hammer, mallethammer
jaw, mandiblejaw
bān
mark, stain, blemish, spotspot; mark; speckle
picture; diagram; map; chartpicture; diagram; map; chart
hǎi
ocean, sea, marinesea; ocean
hūn
marry, marriagemarriage
zōng
brownbrown; palm
duī
mass, pile, heap, to amass, massivepile; heap
xiāng
fragrant; aromatic
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A spice is a substance that may be aromatic; it is not fragrance itself.

fragrant; aromatic; spice
chén
morningmorning
shú
mature, ripe, adultripe; cooked; familiar
yōng
ordinary; usual
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Statistical average, midpoint, norm, and usual value differ.

ordinary; common; mediocre
méi
media, communication, pressmedium; intermediary
hùn
mixture, mixmix; mingle
bēi
sad, melancholy, mournsad; sorrow
guā
melon or gourd fruit
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Melon, pumpkin, gourd are related subtypes.

melon; gourd
yuán
member, adherentmember; personnel
memory, rememberremember; record
xié
threat, menace, menacing, threatenthreaten; coerce
jiǎn
lower degree; less/fewer; subtract; minusreduce; subtract
nǎo
mind; mental; brainbrain; mind
huǎng
lie; deliberate deception
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A false statement can be a sincere mistake.

lie; falsehood
dān
menulist; sheet; in 菜单 'menu'
pèi
deserve, merit, -worthydeserve; be worthy of; match
message, notification, notifynews; information; breath
liáng
measure, measurement, size (clothing), dimensionmeasure; quantity
shù
method, procedure, technique, means, methodicalmethod; technique; art
绿
greengreen
jūn
military, armyarmy; military
仿
fǎng
mimic, copy, imitationimitate; copy
ěr
earear
kuàng
mine (place + action)mine; ore
quē
lack; absence; missing constituent
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Missing a target, missing a train, and failing to notice are not the same as lacking something.

lack; be short of
rice grain
Usage & scope

Rice grain only. The unit metre is written m in the SI notation register; no second lexical sense.

uncooked rice grain; metre
furnitureimplement; furniture-related
shì
manner; mode; form
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Emotional mood is not necessarily a mode; fashionable is not every manner.

style; form; pattern
wén
mosquito
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Mosquito and fly are distinct; not every fly bites.

mosquito
nǎi
milk, milkymilk; breast
shùn
moment, instant, instantaneous, immediateinstant; blink
hóu
monkey or ape
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Monkey, gorilla, chimpanzee are distinct animals.

monkey
morality; virtue
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Morale is not morality.

virtue; morality
custom, habit, customary, tradition, traditionalcustom; conventional
die; death; dead
Usage & scope

Intransitive die. Causing death uses 做 可 subject 咿 死, with the cause and event explicitly separated.

die; death
dòng
move; motion
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A movie is not motion itself; the note rejects it.

move; motion
tán
mucus, snot, phlegmphlegm
wax, waxywax
mén
door, gatedoor; gate
shì
world, globe, globalworld; age; generation
antant
qiáng
wallwall
muscle, muscularmuscle
shǔ
mouse, ratmouse; rat
huà
transform; turn into; change intotransform; turn into; change into
breathe, breathexhale; breathe out; call
shé
snake, slithersnake
yǒng
swimswim
xīng
star; celestial point of light
Usage & scope

Astronomical star/point of light. A planet requires a description of the kind of celestial body, not this bare word alone. No celebrity/highlight meaning.

star; celestial body; planet-related in 行星
wave, undulationwave
zhǎi
narrow
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Thin may mean thickness rather than width; a strait is a geographical feature.

narrow
nosenose
gāo
thick paste; ointment
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Food cream, ointment, and other pastes are different substances.

cream; paste; fat
dàn
birth, give birthbirth; be born
chuán
boat, shipboat; ship
predict, prophecy, prediction, propheticbeforehand; anticipate
jìn
near; spatial/contextual proximity
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Nearly/almost is an approximation operator, which already has 几.

near; close
mist, fog, foggy, nebulousfog; mist
jǐng
neckneck
need, necessity, requirement, necessaryneed; require
wǎng
net, network, mesh, web, enmeshnet; network
xuě
snowsnow
cháo
nest, hive, dennest
ròu
meat, fleshmeat; flesh
jiǔ
ninenine
dié
spy (noun), snoop, scout, surveilspy; espionage
sneezesneeze
tuǐ
legleg
nóng
farm, cultivate, agriculturalagriculture; farming
běi
northnorth
yún
cloud, cloudycloud
miàn
noodlenoodles; flour; surface
luǒ
nude, naked, nuditynaked; nude
rub, friction, massage, caress, tickle, chaferub; friction
nutkernel; pit; core
jīn
nownow; today
dàn
mild; bland; low sensory intensity
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Political neutrality, grammatical neuter, impartiality, and boredom are distinct.

bland; mild; light
zūn
obey, compliance, obedientobey; follow
hèn
hate, hatred, enmityhate
zuì
crime, offense, sin, offensive, criminalcrime; sin; guilt
sacrifice, offeringoffer sacrifice; worship
guān
government official; governmentalgovernment official; governmental
bureau; administrative department
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A situation is not an administrative unit.

bureau; office; department; situation
yǎn
eye, glance, one's sighteye
yóu
oil, unctuousoil
cōng
onion/scallion category
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Every plant bulb is not an onion.

onion; scallion
róng
honor, honorable, reputationhonor; glory
zhōng
hour; clock time
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A duration unit and a clock reading need distinct numerical constructions.

clock; hour-related
chéng
orange fruit
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A one-word English gloss hides orange's fruit/color ambiguity.

orange; orange color
yuán
origin, source, originalsource; origin
bǎi
oscillate, swing, a swingswing; sway; arrange
bonebone
yīn
shade; shadow
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Hiding is an act and hidden need not mean shaded.

shade; hidden; overcast
qiū
autumnautumn
oven, furnace, bake, heateroven; stove; furnace
yáng
sheep
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Lamb is a life stage, while goat overlaps a separate entry.

sheep; goat
dàn
eggegg
shù
forgive; pardon
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Forgiving, approving/condoning, and making excuses differ.

forgive; pardon
pay, payment, spendpay; hand over
guó
nation, country, nationalcountry; nation
guǒ
package, parcel, packet, bundlewrap; bundle
pants, trouserstrousers
zhǐ
paperpaper
dié
butterfly or moth
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: These are related kinds of insect.

butterfly
tíng
stop, haltstop
duì
parade, march, processionprocession; team; queue
qīn
relative; kin
Usage & scope

Kin/relative, not uniquely a parent. Specify the genealogical relationship when it matters.

parent; relative; close kin
bet, wager, gamblegamble; bet
kǎo
grill; roast
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A grid or grate is not the act of grilling.

roast; grill; bake
mài
step, stride, pacestep; stride
shǔ
potatopotato; yam
tíng
patio, courtyard, yardcourtyard
waterfowl; duck, goose, or swan
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Duck, goose, swan are subtypes.

duck
zàn
pause, break, interruptiontemporarily; for the moment
foot
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Kicking and stomping are different foot actions.

foot
skin, surface, peel, hide (animal)skin; peel; hide
pen, pencil, styluspen; brush
xuán
hang; suspended
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Narrative suspense is an independent metaphor.

hang; suspend
shuā
brush
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Combing and sweeping need not use the same tool or action.

brush
fivefive
jiāo
pepper, spicypepper
private, privacyprivate; personal
qín
piano
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: The Chinese instrument family is broader than the selected Sino-Mini meaning.

musical instrument; piano-related
pán
plate, dish, disc, tray, to plateplate; tray; dish
zhé
fold, creasefold; bend; break
zhū
pig, boarpig
buttbuttocks-related; fart
prick, pierce, stingstab; prick; sting
huáng
yellowyellow
wán
pill, pellet, bulletpill; pellet
zhěn
pillow, cushionpillow
zhēn
pin, needleneedle; pin
paint, painting, paintedpaint; smear
尿
niào
pee, urinateurine; urinate
dào
piraterobber; thief
chā
forkfork
fishfish
chí
pool of water, pond, swimming poolpool; pond
lián
pity, mercy, compassion, sympathy, sympathizepity; compassion
featherfeather
shī
poem, poetry, poeticpoem; poetry
dōu
pocketpocket; pouch
xún
policepatrol; make rounds
zhèng
politics, political, politicizepolitics; government
chicken, fowlchicken
píng
appleapple-related (in 苹果)
fàng
put, lay, placeput; place; release
qiáo
bridgebridge
mín
people; population
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Populous and popular are different claims.

people; population
yùn
transport; carry
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Port is a place, cargo a transported thing.

transport; carry; fortune
guō
pot, pan, cauldron, crucible, saucepanpot; pan
qióng
poor, povertypoor; impoverished
kān
print, publishpublish; print; publication
chóng
worship; venerate
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Ordinary praise or affectionate adoration need not be worship.

revere; worship
dāo
knife, dagger, stabknife; blade
plastic material
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Malleability is a property not limited to plastic.

plastic; mold
bèng
pump (motion + tool)pump
punish, punishmentpunish; penalty
quán
fist; punch with a fist
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Knob, hilt, and handgrip are not fists.

fist; boxing
diǎn
point; dot
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Indicating something and being physically sharp do not follow from a point noun.

point; dot
ǒu
doll, puppetpuppet; idol; pair
chún
pure; unmixed
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Clean is not necessarily pure, and cleansing may mean removing dirt rather than impurities.

pure
tuī
press, push, shovepush
shè
emit/project a ray; ray/beam
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Mathematical radius is not radiation.

emit rays; radiate; shoot
gēn
root, rooted, rhizome, tuberroot
wáng
ruler, royal, king, queenking; monarch
jià
rack; frame; framework; supportrack; frame; framework; support
arm
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A tree branch and every kind of limb are not arms.

arm
xié
ramp, lean, incline, slope, bow, slant, tilt, tiltedslanted; inclined
frog, toadfrog
suí
arbitrary; chosen without a specified criterion
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Randomness in probability and arbitrary choice are not identical.

follow; as one pleases; random-related
ordinal position
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Social status is not ordinal position without a stated ranking.

ordinal-number prefix
zǎo
early, too soonearly
race, ethnicity, racialethnic group; clan
guā
shave, scrape, grazescrape; shave
ratio; rate
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A fraction may mean a number representation, an arbitrary part, or a ratio.

rate; ratio
answer; respond
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A physical or chemical reaction is not necessarily a reply.

answer; reply
pàn
rebel; rebellion
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Revolution may name a major change without rebellion, and treason is a legal category.

rebel; betray
bèi
ready; prepared
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Available is not the same as prepared.

prepare; ready
refer to, reference, mention, allusionmention; bring up; lift
rainrain
guī
rule; regulate
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A measuring ruler is English homonymy with rule.

rule; regulate
yòu
right (direction)right
guǐ
rail; track
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A train is a vehicle on tracks, not the track.

rail; track
lián
relate, relation, relationship, connection, connect withconnect; unite
zōng
religion, religiousreligion; sect; ancestor
jiǎng
oar/paddle
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A rudder steers without necessarily propelling.

oar; paddle
shèn
kidneykidney
rent; lease
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Borrowing need not involve payment.

rent; lease
liú
flow; current
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Rhythm and influence are not automatically flow.

flow; current
xiū
fix, correction, improvement, repair, mendrepair; mend
crawl; creep
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Reptiles are a biological class, not anything that crawls.

crawl; climb
jiē
reveal, divulge, disclose, revelation, disclosurereveal; uncover
rich, wealthrich; wealthy
yùn
rhyme, rhymingrhyme
huán
ring, loop, hoop, circuit, haloring; loop
xiào
laugh; smilelaugh; smile
shōu
receive
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Acknowledging is an act that may occur without receiving an object.

receive; collect
rite, ceremony, ceremonialrite; ceremony; courtesy
river, streamriver
páo
dress, roberobe; gown
tōu
steal, theftsteal
niè
rodent (non-mouse), squirrel, beavergnaw
wèn
ask, questionask; question
break, rupture, smash, disruptbreak; damage
hān
snore
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Grunting does not imply sleep or snoring.

snore
méi
rose flower
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Pink is a color and rose a plant.

rose-related (in 玫瑰)
huǐ
destroy, ruin, destruction, downfalldestroy; ruin
hóng
redred
yáo
gossip, rumor, rumoredrumor; ballad
bào
hug, embracehug; embrace
鹿
deerdeer
zhà
trick, hoax, ruse, fraud, scam, trickydeceive; fraud
burp, belchbelch; hiccup
desertdesert
cán
mean, cruel, sadisticcruel; injure; incomplete
travel; journey
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An adventure can occur without travel and travel need not be adventurous.

journey; travel
story; narrative
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A narrative need not be fictional.

story-related (in 故事); cause; former
huì
wise, wisdomwisdom; wise
jiǔ
alcohol; liquor; winealcoholic drink; wine; liquor; spirits
dài
bag, sackbag; sack
tuò
saliva, spit, expectoratesaliva; spit
yán
salt; salty
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Not all seasoning is salt.

salt
tīng
salon, parlorhall; room; parlor
hāi
greeting
Usage & scope

Hello/greeting on meeting. Farewell is expressed by an explicit wish or leaving statement; no goodbye sense.

hello; hey
jiā
sandwichsandwich between; press from two sides
xuè
blood, bleedblood
kāng
health, healthy, healhealthy; well
xié
shoeshoe
jiù
rescue; save from danger/loss
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Retrieving an object need not rescue it; theological salvation is domain-specific.

rescue; save
wild; not domesticated
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Uncivilized and savage carry social/evaluative meanings unrelated to biological wildness.

wild; untamed
zào
soapsoap
ruò
if; on conditionif; as if
zuò
sit
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A seat/chair is an object used for sitting; not every sit event implies a chair.

sit
secret, mysterysecret; mysterious
gān
dry, drynessdry
xiào
schoolschool
miǎo
second (time)second (time)
ān
secure, safe, safety, securitysafe; peaceful
bāo
biological cell
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A prison/small room is English homonymy.

cell (biology)
zhōu
week, weeklyweek; cycle
zhǒng
seedseed
bàn
half
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Partial and incomplete may be any fraction, not specifically one half.

half
tái
scene, stagestage; platform
sòng
send, transmit, dispatch, broadcast, a postsend; deliver
art, artisticart; skill
jūn
mr., ms., sir, madam, lord, mastergentleman; lord; polite address
sentence; phrase
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A judicial sentence/verdict is not a linguistic sentence.

sentence; phrase
gǎn
sense, feel, touch, feeling
Usage & scope

Experienced quality after 诶. Touch as physical contact must be stated, not inferred from any feeling.

feel; sense
bǎi
hundredhundred
close, shut, sealclose; shut
liáng
grain, cereal, wheatgrain; cereal; provisions
liè
series, list, order, row, enumeratelist; row; series
serious, earnest, seriousnessserious; solemn
jiāo
sexual activity; copulate
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Gender and sexual activity are different concepts.

intercourse; mate; intersect; exchange
thirst, thirstythirsty
sevenseven
yán
severe, strictstrict; severe
kūn
sibling, brother, sisterelder brother (literary)
shào
whistle
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Hissing, fizzing, and whizzing differ acoustically and by source.

whistle
science, scientific, -ologyscience-related; branch; subject
continue; go on with; follow; next; succeedingfollow; continue; succeed
yín
silver, silverysilver
jìng
silence, silentquiet; silent
shǎ
foolish
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Trivial/unimportant need not mean foolish.

foolish; silly
xiōng
chest, torsochest
jìn
cinder, ash, ashyashes; cinders
sign, mark, symbol, signal, token, logosymbol; sign
shuò
sparkle, twinkleglitter; sparkle
líng
bell, siren, alarm, to chime, handbell, doorbellbell
jiǎn
scissors, shearsscissors; cut with scissors
liù
sixsix
system, systematic, systematizesystem; series; connection
chéng
citycity; town
citizenship; civic membership
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Citizen, civilian, civil, and civilize collapse several English senses.

citizenship/registration-related; register
rán
so; thus; suchso; thus; such
sofacouch; low bed
chuī
blow, inflate, puffblow
sock, stockingsock
rǎng
soil; earth material
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Clay and mud are subtypes/properties that need not coincide.

soil
solid, firmsolid; firm
alone; sole
Usage & scope

Alone in a stated set/context; sole occupant/member when that set has one member. Not a free focus particle meaning only anywhere. Cardinal one is 一.

alone; sole
jiě
untie; loosen; release a binding
Usage & scope

Untie/loosen a binding. Resolve an issue through 决 where appropriate; chemical dissolution must be described. No generic solution homonym.

untie; solve; loosen
xià
summersummer
xiē
some; unspecified amount
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Few asserts a small amount, whereas some need not.

some; a few
mèng
dreamdream
qiàn
sorry, to be sorry, contrition, remorseregretful; sorry; apology
shè
society, socialsociety; association
róu
soft; yielding
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Smoothness is surface texture, and even may be geometry or distribution.

soft; gentle; supple
sudden, suddenly, abrupt, to precipitatesudden; thrust
nán
southsouth
féng
sew, stich, seamsew; stitch
gòu
enough, sufficient, sufficeenough
jiàn
suggest; propose
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Hinting or insinuating may not propose anything.

propose; suggestion-related (in 建议); build
zāng
dirty; grime
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Institutional corruption is not physical dirt.

dirty
suck, suctionsuck; inhale
zǒng
total; sum
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Calculate already has 算; score may be a measure other than a sum.

total; overall
xiáng
surrender, submit, yield, give in, submissionsurrender; submit
soonsoon; immediately; namely
tāng
soupsoup
jīng
surprise, astonish, shock, unexpectedsurprise; startle
cāi
suppose, guess, conjecture, hypothesisguess; conjecture
què
certain, sure, certaintycertain; sure
nán
murmur; whisper
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Rustling is a nonvocal noise rather than necessarily quiet speech.

murmur; mutter
bǎn
board, plank, beam, slatboard; plank
jìn
taboo, forbid, forbiddenprohibit; forbidden
chí
late, tardy, delaylate; delayed
zhǒng
heelheel; follow closely
drumdrum
suī
although; concessive introducer
Usage & scope

Concessive relation in the existing 虽 可 clause frame. English however/ nevertheless do not add extra syntax.

although
filter, sieve, colanderfilter
tǎn
carpet, rugcarpet; blanket
shǐ
history, historicalhistory
shuì
tax
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A generic fee, bill, and charge need not be taxation.

tax
dǐng
ceiling, roofroof; top
chá
teatea
theater, theatricaldrama; theater-related
líng
goat or antelope
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: The chosen grouping mixes familiar animals without a clear boundary.

antelope
technology, technological, technicaltechnique; skill; technology-related
cloth, fabriccloth
theme, subject, topic, to be about, to concerntopic; subject
shí
tenten
qīng
tendency, bias, inclination, inclined tolean; incline; tendency
hold, grasp, cling tohold; grasp
zhāng
stretch; tension
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Grammatical tense is English homonymy.

stretch; tense; open
shì
try, attempt, experiment, trial, tentative, provisionaltry; test
lùn
theory, theorizetheory; discuss
medical; treat; therapymedical; treat; therapy
zhī
weave, woven, knitweave; knit
breast, titbreast; milk
shū
uncle, auntuncle (father's younger brother)
zhì
until, till, up to, approach, reachto; until; reach
xiū
timid, shy, coy, reservedshy; ashamed
tin
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A can need not be made of tin.

tin (metal)
gāo
high, tall, heighthigh; tall
ink
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Tint/hue is a color property, not the substance used for writing.

ink
zhàng
tent, teepee, huttent
lèi
kind; category
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Quality is a property, not a class; typicality is relative to a category.

type; kind; category
pull, tugpull
toilet, urinal, restroom, WC, use bathroomtoilet; lavatory
róng
contain; accommodate physically
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Tolerating behavior and physically containing matter are distinct frames.

contain; accommodate; tolerate
léi
thunderthunder
mào
hat; cap/headwear
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A mountain summit is not headwear.

hat; cap
tower; pagoda; spiretower; pagoda; spire
niǎo
birdbird
cough
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An animal barking is not coughing.

cough
guī
turtle, tortoiseturtle; tortoise
bàn
companion, spouse, partner, comradecompanion; partner
guǎn
tube, pipepipe; tube
bào
storm, stormy, typhoon, hurricaneviolent; storm-related
yǒng
always; throughout the stated time interval
Usage & scope

Throughout the stated interval. 永 不 is ordinary interval-wide negation; it does not add a lexical never word or existential ever reading.

forever; always
grave, tombgrave; tomb
liú
tumor
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: An arbitrary swelling/bulge does not identify a tumor.

tumor
dùn
blunt; not sharp
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Dumb can mean unable to speak or unintelligent; neither follows from bluntness.

blunt; dull
liàn
exercise, training, practice, drillpractice; train
rén
kind; humane
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Solidarity is collective alignment/support, not necessarily kindness.

benevolence; humaneness
xiā
shrimp or lobster
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Crab is also a crustacean but has 蟹.

shrimp; prawn
yòu
young, youth, a youthyoung; juvenile
gōu
hook
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Mitre has several English senses, none supplied just by hook.

hook
xiāo
owlowl
qiān
modest; humble
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Shame does not entail humility.

humble; modest
jiàn
sport, athletic, physical exercisehealthy; vigorous; athletic-related
zhǎo
claw; hard pointed nail of an animal
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Related keratinous body parts have different forms.

claw; talon
universe; cosmos
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Universal may mean applicable to all, rather than cosmic.

universe-related; eaves
gōng
womb, uteruswomb/uterus (abbreviation); palace
yóu
wander, roam, rovewander; roam; travel; swim
jià
vacation, holidayvacation; leave
dài
represent; stand for; representative; agent acting on behalf of another; envoyrepresent; substitute; generation
kōng
empty; unoccupied
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Outer space and vacuum are related but not equivalent; vacuous can be evaluative.

empty; space
valleyvalley
zhí
value; worthvalue; worth
ào
vanity, pride, proudproud; arrogant
steam, vaporsteam; vapor
huò
goods; wares; merchandise; commodities; material suppliesgoods; merchandise
shū
vary; variation
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Statistical variance is a specific mathematical quantity, not any variation.

different; distinct
chūn
spring (season)spring season
wherewhich; where-related (in 哪里)
xǐng
awake; awaken
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Awareness of a fact is not necessarily wakefulness.

wake; awake
fān
sailsail
whenwhen; why; what (literary)
mài
sell, salesell
bào
revenge, vengeful, to seek revengerepay; requite; avenge; report
venom, poison, to poisonpoison; venom
jìng
respect, veneration, respectfulrespect; honor
píng
screen; shield; screen offscreen; shield; screen off
chuāng
window
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Mirror and screen were already assigned separate words, but remain in this gloss.

window
fēng
wind, windywind
西
westwest
hòu
weather, climateweather/climate-related; time; wait
zhèn
vibe, shake, vibrate, agitate, vibration, turbulenceshake; vibrate
videorecord; video-related
cūn
village, townvillage
dāng
while, duringduring; when; at the time of
jiù
blame, fault, guiltblame; fault
wing
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Hat brim and arbitrary vanes are shape/function extensions.

wing
dōng
winterwinter
xián
bowed string instrument
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Violin and viola are specific bowed instruments; all string instruments is broader.

string of musical instrument
xiōng
violence, violentfierce; violent
biān
whip, lashwhip
访
fǎng
visitvisit
fēi
fly, flightfly
ǒu
vomitvomit
yōu
worry, concernworry
piào
votevote; ballot
zhòu
curse, hex, jinx, spellcurse; spell
zhì
wormworm-like invertebrate (literary); animal radical
miào
wonder, miracle, marvel, wonderfulwonderful; marvelous
wàn
ten thousandten thousand
亿
one hundred millionone hundred million
使
shǐ
messenger; envoy
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Send duplicates 送 and actor/event direction is unclear.

messenger; envoy; send
lán
orchidorchid
gòng
common; shared; togethercommon; shared; together
dèng
stool; benchstool; bench
bàn
handle; conduct; manage; dohandle; conduct; manage; do
pǐn
product; article/item
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Kind and grade import independent classifier/evaluation senses.

article; product; goods; kind; grade
dǎo
guide; lead; direct; conductguide; lead; direct; conduct
qiǎo
clever; skillfulclever; skillful
lóu
multi-storey building
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: A storey is a part rather than the building.

multi-storey building; storey
martial; militarymartial; military
xiāo
dissipate; diminish
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Eliminating something and consuming it are different processes beyond generic decrease.

dissipate; eliminate; consume
jadejade
principle; rationale
Usage & scope

Excluded automatic extensions: Order may mean sequence, command, or systematic organization.

principle; reason; order
jié
section; segment; jointsection; segment; joint
jiá
podpod
lún
wheel; wheel-like objectwheel; wheel-like object
yuàn
institutional establishment
Usage & scope

An institutional establishment; courtyard uses 庭. 医 院 is simply a medical establishment, not a guaranteed hospital type.

institution; courtyard; enclosed establishment
yīn
musical tone; pitched sound
Usage & scope

Pitched or musical sound. General sound/voice uses 声. 音 艺 is art involving such sounds; it has no special dictionary meaning.

sound; tone
cān
meal; dine; diningmeal; dine; dining
guǎn
service establishment; public building; hallservice establishment; public building; hall
le
perfective aspect
Usage & scope

Preverbal perfective operator; does not itself assert completion or past time.

(completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause)
ma
yes/no question(question particle for "yes-no" questions)
biàn
change; becometo change; to become different; to transform; to vary; rebellion
wán
finish; completeto finish; to be over; whole; complete; entire
men
explicit plurality of a personal pronoun
Usage & scope

Follows 我, 你, or 其 to make plurality explicit: 我 们, 你 们, 其 们. An ordinary grammatical sequence, not three additional words in the vocabulary.

plural marker for pronouns, and nouns referring to individuals
hěn
veryvery; quite; (also, often used before an adjective without intensifying its meaning, i.e. as a meaningless syntactic element)
zuì
extreme-degree selector(before an adjective or verb) to the highest degree; (the) most ...; -est; (after 之[zhi1]) best or most extreme example (e.g. 世界之最[shi4 jie4 zhi1 zui4] "the greatest in the world")
zuó
yesterday
Usage & scope

Yesterday. Use the word alone; no fixed yesterday compound is necessary.

yesterday
míng
bright; clear to sight
Usage & scope

Bright/visually clear only. The succeeding day is 继 日; tomorrow when anchored to today. No future helper.

Ming Dynasty (1368–1644); surname Ming; Ming (c. 2000 BC), fourth of the legendary Flame Emperors, 炎帝[Yan2 di4] descended from Shennong 神農|神农[Shen2 nong2] Farmer God
dào
reach; arriveto reach; to arrive; to leave for; to go to; to (a place); until (a time); up to (a point); (verb complement indicating arriving at a place or reaching a point); considerate; thoughtful; thorough
tǎng
lie down; recline; lie in a recumbent postureto recline; to lie down
yòu
induce; entice(literary) to induce; to entice
shuì
sleepto sleep; to lie down
qīng
light in weight; gentle in forcelight; easy; gentle; soft; reckless; unimportant; frivolous; small in number; unstressed; neutral; to disparage
zhuàn
earn; earnings
Usage & scope

Earn/earnings. Both objectful and objectless uses concern earning, not automatic net profit. Net profit must state income minus costs.

to earn; to make a profit
wèi
for the purpose of; in order tobecause of; for; to
jǐng
trap; pitfallpitfall; trap
quán
institutional authority; entitlement under an institution or rule
Usage & scope

State the institution and authorized action. Authority and entitlement remain a deliberately related institutional family, not practical ability or physical force.

authority; power; right; (literary) to weigh; expedient; temporary
hire; employto employ; to hire; to rent
jiǎng
reward; award; give a rewardprize; award; bonus; reward; (bound form) to encourage; to commend; to praise; to award; to give as a reward
yōu
excellent relative to a stated or contextual criterion
Usage & scope

Criterion-relative excellence, not inherent moral goodness. Comparative forms still require 更/减/同 and a standard where stated.

excellent; superior
funds; capital; material means
Usage & scope

Material or financial means only. General resources may be described broadly as 用 物, or by naming the actual time, abilities, goods, or other means.

resources; capital; to provide; to supply; to support; money; expense
dài
wait; remain pending an event
Usage & scope

Await an event without asserting hope, belief, or eventual occurrence. Frame: 啊 awaited thing/event, or 可 explicitly specified awaited event.

to wait; to treat; to deal with; to need; going to (do sth); about to; intending to
jiè
borrow; obtain for temporary use
Usage & scope

Borrower is the subject; 啊 item, with 从 source. Return is intended, not guaranteed. No lending-direction sense; payment is not asserted.

to borrow; (used in combination with 給|给[gei3] or 出[chu1] etc) to lend; to make use of; to avail oneself of; (sometimes followed by 著|着[zhe5]) by; with
shā
sand
Usage & scope

Granular sand material, distinct from generic powder 粉.

granule; hoarse; raspy; sand; powder; CL:粒[li4]; abbr. for Tsar or Tsarist Russia
yìng
hard; resistant to indentation or deformation
Usage & scope

Physical hardness, not difficulty 难 or metaphorical cruelty.

hard; stiff; solid; (fig.) strong; firm; resolutely; uncompromisingly; laboriously; with great difficulty; good (quality); able (person); (of food) filling; substantial
píng
flat; level in the specified geometric frame
Usage & scope

Flatness/levelness only. Does not mean peace, equality, or every sense of smooth.

flat; level; smooth; to make even; to level; equal; on the same level; (bound form) fair; impartial; to tie; to draw; (bound form) average; ordinary; (bound form) calm; peaceful; (bound form) to quell; to suppress; to put down; (abbr. for 平聲|平声[ping2 sheng1]); (coll.) square meter (abbr. for 平方米[ping2 fang1 mi3])
xiù
smell; perceive through the nose
Usage & scope

Olfactory perception, pleasant or unpleasant; taste is 味 and fragrance 香. Frame: 啊 perceived thing.

to smell; to sniff; to nose
dào
pour; transfer a liquid by tipping
Usage & scope

Pouring does not entail melting 熔. 啊 liquid; destination uses 往 before the object.

to invert; to place upside down or frontside back; to pour out; to tip out; to dump; inverted; upside down; reversed; to go backward; contrary to what one might expect; but; yet
mái
bury; cover by placing under material
Usage & scope

Burial is distinct from excavating 挖. 啊 buried object; location/material must be specified where relevant.

to bury

Sino-Mini has its own grammar. Usage notes explain how words are used within the language.